December 2005 Archives | Ask MetaFilter

I have a full time job and by the end of the day I am too tired to stand. But I need another source of income as I am getting married soon and need to save for all sorts of things. What type of work can I do from home part time that will actually bring in money...all I seem to find on the internet are get rich quick schemes. I don't want to stuff envelopes or anything like that. I have a communications degree and some graphic design experience, some technical writing experience and am handy with a computer. Any suggestions?
posted by brokekid at 1:06 PM PST - 10 comments

My friend's new boss reminds me of a movie actor, and it's driving me crazy. [more inside]
posted by tfmm at 12:54 PM PST - 21 comments

How do I find a usability consultant? [more inside]
posted by SpecialK at 12:52 PM PST - 6 comments

Cutting Tools: I want to cut shapes out of thick stacks of paper and maybe wood laminates. Easy enough, right? Except I want to be able to do cuts that only go from one point in the interior to another point in the interior -- cuts that don't go all the way across or otherwise break the edge. Are there good choices for tools? [more inside]
posted by weston at 12:36 PM PST - 12 comments

The Sherwin-Williams paint logo has always reminded me of a propaganda poster. Possibly with WWII Japan depicted as an octopus. Or maybe there's oil involved. [more inside]
posted by Sangre Azul at 12:26 PM PST - 19 comments

How do I reign in my unfounded jealousy? Am I crazy? How can I just calm down and let it go? [more inside]
posted by inging at 11:56 AM PST - 34 comments

Help me discover New York City through film--before I visit! [more inside]
posted by unclejeffy at 11:46 AM PST - 15 comments

When I drink comparable amounts of liquid as my friends (smaller or larger) I have to urinate much more frequently. It is annoying on car trips, in big cities, or other places where I have to hold out and others don't seem to have as much problems. Are there ways to strengthen my bladder or fix this?
posted by aussicht at 11:34 AM PST - 17 comments

At the risk of looking like a total computer noob, I need a simple way to burn ISOs to CD. [more inside]
posted by Justinian at 11:30 AM PST - 15 comments

Having read this prior question, I'd like to pose something similar in the hope that six months of iSync 2.1 experience will better inform the answer. I'm looking for a phone that painlessly syncs with iSync 2.1, preferably via Bluetooth. I'm not interested in email access, or a camera, or any sort of browsing. Bonus points for T-Mobile affiliation.
posted by boombot at 11:17 AM PST - 9 comments

I'm in (defaulted) student-loan hell. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:08 AM PST - 18 comments

Any residers (either present or present) of bend, oregon? I'm coming from minneapolis, and would like to move there in march. [more inside]
posted by abee at 11:07 AM PST - 6 comments

Ottawa: For those of you that have heard of it, is it a generally pleasant place to live? [more inside]
posted by shucks at 9:10 AM PST - 20 comments

How can I make graphs like the ones found in the Google Zeitgeist? [more inside]
posted by samstarling at 8:45 AM PST - 20 comments

DC Wedding (filter): I'm getting married in Washington, DC in seven weeks. We'd like to have a friend officiate, but District law regarding this is, of course, awkwardly complex. Our friend has now been ordained in the Universal Life Church, but we also need a ULC member who is already licensed by DC to perform marriages to vouch for him. Do you know any such wonderful people that could hope us?
posted by mookieproof at 7:17 AM PST - 8 comments

Need some some software for viewing DIRCOM files of a PET scan. I've downloaded the Julius framework software and it looks like my work computer here isn't powerful enough to run it. I'm hoping someone knows of fast easy and free software for viewing these scans. [more inside]
posted by Moondoggie at 6:38 AM PST - 3 comments

Retailhelp: I've decided to buy a new winter coat, online, today. Problem is, most everything out there is on clearance or in limited sizes. I'm looking for some collective hunting help. [more inside]
posted by cior at 6:30 AM PST - 9 comments

So here's my dilemma. The pipe that brings water to our house freezes. It’s not four feet deep. We've lived here three years. It happened the first year, not the second year, and then again a few days ago. When it happens I have to go to the neighbors and fill two five gallon buckets and bring them into the house to meet our needs. Flush our toilets, clean our dishes, water our pets and plants, fill the humidifiers in our two babies' rooms, etc. Fifty gallons a day, at least. And that doesn’t include cleaning clothes. This continues until the ground thaws. Now the question. It seems the folks who lived here before us knew of this problem. No, it wasn’t in the disclosure. What they did was weld wires to the pipe, from the well and then at the house, and then hook those up to an arc welder. The current would melt the pipes and the water would flow again. So, yes, in the spring we’ll dig a very expensive new supply pipe, but in the mean time, I’d like advice about circuits.? A condition of the sale of the house required a new septic. The contractor who put in the septic broke the pipe from the well and then he repaired it with PVC. Will the arc welder method still work or would that end in catastrophe? Did he build a fuse? There's water in the pipe and ice is conductive, but how will the PVC respond?
posted by Toekneesan at 6:16 AM PST - 30 comments

I've been divorced now for over a year. I dated someone early in the year for a little while but we broke up and remain friends. Anyway, I've never really been in to the dating scene and I am somewhat shy. I like a teacher at my daughter's daycare but I don't know her at all and don't really feel comfortable basically hitting on someone when they are at work. Does that make sense? She's so hot I'm somewhat certain she'll be taken or I'll get shot down anyway. Should I just go for it? The other thing is that she will be my daughter's next teacher when she moves to that room (she is 2). Of course my ex is at the school all the time. I have an ok relationship with her and we are very civil and work hard at things with our daughter. There isn't any bad blood at all but I was just thinking how that might cause some "issues". Actually I think she (my ex) would be a good sport about it (she has a serious bf now) but I just wanted to see if that set off any flags for anyone. So I haven't even really flirted with this girl and I only even introduced myself the other day so she probably can't know I like her. I was going to ask one of the other teachers if she is taken but then I thought that would look really childish. I would prob just ask if she wanted to get coffee or something first. Am I making this too hard?
posted by arh07 at 6:14 AM PST - 28 comments

i have a list of private companies and am looking to automate the collection of the ceo name for each one.
posted by finnstones at 6:01 AM PST - 8 comments

I'm looking for a certain story or legend about a woman who's village was invaded by troops. She kills them with kindness (or, more probably, knives) [more inside]
posted by blueberry at 4:56 AM PST - 9 comments

So-Cal Music Playlist? A friend of mine has requested a CD of songs from my music collection... specifically the Southern California sound. [more inside]
posted by Bdave at 4:12 AM PST - 24 comments

Picassa like document archiver/browser [more inside]
posted by sk381 at 1:43 AM PST - 4 comments

Suggestions on reliable, inexpensive (<$50) software for converting AVI to MPEG-2?
posted by Artifice_Eternity at 1:41 AM PST - 21 comments

Are any MeFites here sufferers of Trichotillomannia? Or the loved one of someone who does have it, like I am? Does anyone have any suggestions how I could help them? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 12:33 AM PST - 11 comments

How can a tonsillectomy affect one's singing voice? [more inside]
posted by mr.dan at 12:26 AM PST - 5 comments

What's Albuquerque's finest? If you were showing a stranger the most amazing sights and experiences within two hours' drive of Albuquerque, where would you go? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 12:07 AM PST - 15 comments

Ethical dilemma filter: How to move on from negative consequences of a hack done out of real concern? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 12:06 AM PST - 12 comments

I was wondering if any MeFites have experienced fecal incontinence. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 12:06 AM PST - 7 comments

I am trying to find out information on this painting. [more inside]
posted by Infernarl at 11:59 PM PST - 6 comments

How can match the wallpaper in my kitchen? [more inside]
posted by Tacodog at 11:13 PM PST - 2 comments

Why does my Blue Snowball mock me? I've been attempting to get my new USB Microphone working on my Windows XP SP2 box with little luck... help! [more inside]
posted by fet at 11:08 PM PST - 3 comments

I am curious as to the quality of life in San Diego. The cost of living, the availability of jobs, the housing market, etc. [more inside]
posted by iced_borsch at 10:49 PM PST - 15 comments

Is there a free/cheap speech-to-text converter (ie. dictation, verbal notes) that works reasonably well? [more inside]
posted by Kickstart70 at 10:07 PM PST - 8 comments

Help me find a free translator program (English-Korean-English) for my Palm m500. [more inside]
posted by Brittanie at 9:48 PM PST - 1 comments

Help me plan a crazycheap February ski trip for my Boy Scout group. [more inside]
posted by Sfving at 7:58 PM PST - 13 comments

Can someone break down skiing terminology in a way that isn't completely confusing? [more inside]
posted by Big Fat Tycoon at 7:45 PM PST - 6 comments

Why am I getting muscle cramps in the strangest of places? [more inside]
posted by anonpeon at 7:10 PM PST - 14 comments

Help me buy a winter coat before boxing week ends! [more inside]
posted by GleepGlop at 6:52 PM PST - 6 comments

I'm looking for any information regarding a danish anarchist gang of children. [more inside]
posted by jojomnky at 6:25 PM PST - 6 comments

Why do girls get all of the totally sweet shoes? [more inside]
posted by soma lkzx at 6:06 PM PST - 37 comments

Have any U.S. cities (or cities elsewhere) ever changed their name out of embarrassment? [more inside]
posted by interrobang at 5:55 PM PST - 41 comments

US Postal Service collection times: those blue boxes at the post office or street corners often list 2 or 3 different collection times. Does my mail really get to its destination faster by my getting it in the box by 12pm as opposed to 5pm?
posted by state fxn at 5:48 PM PST - 18 comments

When I opened up hotmail today someone else's email address was in the saved user name spot, how is this possible? [more inside]
posted by phirleh at 5:44 PM PST - 16 comments

IdentifyThisSongFilter: girl vocalist, droning guitars... what the hell is it? [more inside]
posted by dead_ at 5:33 PM PST - 17 comments

Free Windows chart-making software that works with simple tab-separated data files and beats Excel's charts for options, esthetics, and readability?
posted by scarabic at 5:16 PM PST - 7 comments

What GBA games work best on the GameBoy Micro's small screen? [more inside]
posted by Otis at 5:00 PM PST - 7 comments

Just how much do people make on television? I'm not talking about the big-time tv stars with well-publicized contracts such as network stars like Friends, Oprah, Letterman, Katie Couric, etc., or the many people who get sitcom/series deals on major networks where we can guesstimate how much they are earning to the right order of magnitude. No, I'm asking about all the "little people" who fill my teevee screen. (much more inside) [more inside]
posted by hincandenza at 4:44 PM PST - 19 comments

Is the 3,000-mile oil change a scam? [more inside]
posted by holgate at 4:37 PM PST - 24 comments

TorontoMassageFilter: Anyone know a good massage place in Toronto? [more inside]
posted by toftflin at 3:44 PM PST - 4 comments

What's the best way to do a client-side image map w/added rollover goodness? [more inside]
posted by docgonzo at 3:43 PM PST - 4 comments

I've been playing around lately with fonts, and I recently installed and then uninstalled FontAgent Pro. Now I'm finding certain sites and applications are rendering certain fonts oddly, making them appear heavier then they should. [more inside]
posted by cmyr at 3:20 PM PST - 4 comments

Tinned celery in the UK - have I been hallucinating canned vegetables? [more inside]
posted by kitschbitch at 3:02 PM PST - 6 comments

What weblogs/websites would you recommend for high fashion and/or expensive cosmetics, as found at Neiman Marcus and other stores. [more inside]
posted by plexi at 2:45 PM PST - 5 comments

Basic RSS question-- I'm trying to add RSS to my site, and since I'm teaching this to myself, I'm confused. [more inside]
posted by madmath at 2:30 PM PST - 10 comments

Help me convince my cow orker that the YMCA isn't going to send us off to the pokey and sue us into oblivion. [more inside]
posted by phearlez at 2:13 PM PST - 21 comments

In Bob Dylan's book Chronicles, Vol. 1 he describes an esoteric numerological scheme for playing guitar, saying most melodies are based on the number 2, but that he's taken it to the next level by choosing what to play based on the number 3. Can anyone explain what he is talking about? [more inside]
posted by johngoren at 2:04 PM PST - 23 comments

What is the best 3-button mouse for OS X 10.3? I'm looking for a 2-button+scroll wheel mouse that's good for gaming. More buttons than that would be OK, but solid, responsive left-click, right-click, and scroll is imperative. I know, it's a very subjective question, but what do you use, and how well do you like it?
posted by bricoleur at 2:01 PM PST - 18 comments

My computer is making a funny noise and overheating. Can you help me fix it? [more inside]
posted by MrZero at 1:36 PM PST - 17 comments

My husband and I just received a gift box of Florida oranges. I know we'll never eat 30+ oranges before they go bad, so I'm looking for orange-intensive recipes. I've googled, but all I turn up are recipes that call for small quantities of orange juice or orange zest. I'd like to do something more interesting than just squeezing them for juice. Any suggestions?
posted by gokart4xmas at 1:31 PM PST - 24 comments

What's your favorite XML IDE? I'm looking for something that will show me the results of XPATH queries on the fly and transform XML via a stylesheet inside the tool. [more inside]
posted by yerfatma at 1:16 PM PST - 11 comments

I posted this question a few months ago about pelvic (specifically vaginal) pain during intercourse. It's still happening, and it's starting to have a serious emotional toll on my relationship. Please help! [more inside]
posted by fizzyliftingdrink at 1:13 PM PST - 24 comments

Needing the inside scoop on apartment renting in Chicago. I've read the previous threads about apartment hunting in Chicago and have looked into the suggestions that were offered, but what I think I need are some one-off apartments that are being rented out directly by the owners/ landlords. Are there any resources that list such vacancies? As I imagine it, the resource would be a bit quieter than Craigslist or the Reader. [more inside]
posted by auntbee at 1:11 PM PST - 11 comments

Similar to another recent question, who are some fantastic custom tattoo artists in Los Angeles / southern California? [more inside]
posted by scallion at 1:08 PM PST - 5 comments

My step-father (in his 70s) is looking for a mini-recorder to get his life story down. Got recommendations? [more inside]
posted by davebug at 12:51 PM PST - 9 comments

Advice on non-degree film editing workshops? [more inside]
posted by catesbie at 11:49 AM PST - 5 comments

Alternative-MedicineFilter: I need to find a report of a Clinical Study on efficacy of Acupuncture in Chronic Pain Management. [more inside]
posted by BigLankyBastard at 11:36 AM PST - 4 comments

Revolutionary War Slogans? I' know "No Taxation without Representation", but what other authentic revolutionary war slogans were out there? I've tried Wikipeda, and google-fu, and have seen quotes, but no rallying cries, ala "Remember the Maine" and "54 40 or fight".
posted by Philbo at 11:25 AM PST - 13 comments

Better to-do list for Palm OS? The bult-in "tasks" is good for singular, date-based items, but is there anything similar to Ta-da Lists for the Palm? Ideally I want to be able to create multiple lists of to-do items ("Books To Read" for example) and have checked items move to the bottom of the list or disappear. (Just bought a T|X and am having fun playing around) [more inside]
posted by Robot Johnny at 11:24 AM PST - 4 comments

New Baby / Webcam Question: I'll be taking our baby to work with me from now on. I'd like to hook up a webcam over her crib in my office and have it upload a pic every so often (automatically) to my website so that my wife can see her from work. What's the best program solution for this?
posted by damiano99 at 11:06 AM PST - 7 comments

I have a recipe that calls for Date Paste. However, I can't find date paste. So, do you know anywhere in Toronto I can buy it or do you have a recipe for it? Or if you have some around your house, can you check the ingredients? Anything besides dates in it? [more inside]
posted by dobbs at 11:02 AM PST - 5 comments

Creative types: Help me design my mother's sketchbook cover. [more inside]
posted by macadamia at 10:49 AM PST - 12 comments

I'm looking for the title/artist of two rap/dance songs from around the mid-Eighties, one of which says "change the beat", and the other says "freeze...defrost". Sketchy details inside. [more inside]
posted by NewGear at 10:36 AM PST - 8 comments

Any ideas on an affordable way to spend 4 – 6 weeks in Mexico this summer? [more inside]
posted by a22lamia at 10:11 AM PST - 5 comments

How do you verbalize things that you just -do-? Specifically with regard to computers (or anything else for that matter). [more inside]
posted by zerokey at 10:00 AM PST - 19 comments

Might a business blacklist customers for participating in a class-action settlement? [more inside]
posted by rolypolyman at 9:58 AM PST - 11 comments

Resources for researching pre-menopause and perimenopause? [more inside]
posted by small_ruminant at 9:52 AM PST - 7 comments

Anybody have a Sony PSP? If so, what are your favorite games? I especially like first person shooters.
posted by govtdrone at 9:52 AM PST - 10 comments

I'm embarking on an intense italian vocabulary learning routine, and I need some advice on how to maximize my effort using lexicons and flashcard software. [più dentro] [more inside]
posted by Oneirokritikos at 9:34 AM PST - 2 comments

I'm looking for a cheap and easy way to add molding around an arched doorway. [more inside]
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 9:32 AM PST - 12 comments

Where can I get a replacement modem for my Tivo?
posted by hophead627 at 9:23 AM PST - 6 comments

So we just got a new printer at work. It has a standard USB printer cable. But I somehow need to connect it to our linksys print server which has the old-school 25 pin female printer cable receptacle -- you know, looks like this. Can this be done? And how? Thanks as always...
posted by Heminator at 9:02 AM PST - 6 comments

Another Mac/PC question. I want to switch back to Mac, but my office is all PC. Help me figure out if a Mac will be compatible, and if it's worth the trouble. (I know it's been asked before, but I have specific questions.) [more inside]
posted by kdern at 8:56 AM PST - 20 comments

How do I convince someone to fully "hand over" (to the public, not to me specificallY) a now dead, open source but not totally "open licensed" project. Furthermore, how do I find people who might want to work on its revival? [more inside]
posted by twiggy at 8:48 AM PST - 6 comments

EducationalWallChart Filter. I'm looking for printable web page(s) (or, alternatively, a retail product) that show a timeline of astronomical-anthopological events like: when Big Bang occurred; when our galaxy and solar system formed; when life began; when major life forms began and ended (e.g. dinosaurs); when primates appeared; when various proto-humans appeared; when homo sapiens appeared. Must be in TimeLine form. Not something vague and basic -- needs to have lots of detail.
posted by nancoix at 8:42 AM PST - 4 comments

Where's a girl to ski? [more inside]
posted by dpx.mfx at 8:10 AM PST - 27 comments

Looking for jungle-themed music for a NYE party. More inside. [more inside]
posted by fearless_yakov at 7:14 AM PST - 23 comments

A friend has asked me to marry her and her fiance- to perform their marriage, that is. [more inside]
posted by pissfactory at 7:11 AM PST - 15 comments

What is the best way to share an external hard drive between a PC and a Mac (both laptops) so that both computers can read and write to it? Can it even be done? [more inside]
posted by LouMac at 7:09 AM PST - 11 comments

Tofu - at what temperature does it cook? [more inside]
posted by amtho at 6:44 AM PST - 16 comments

[MeatFilter] What is the American equivalent of a cut of beef known as punta de anca in Spanish or picañha in Brasilian Portugese? [more inside]
posted by electroboy at 6:15 AM PST - 9 comments

How do I investigate/trackback brands/products/companies to determine if they are (subsidiaries of) publicly traded companies? [more inside]
posted by iurodivii at 6:14 AM PST - 7 comments

I've started In Search of Lost Time and found I like it. Should I keep going? At page 80 I'm barely 2 percent of the way through the whole work; it would likely take me 2-3 years to get through all seven volumes. Has anyone finished the whole thing? Was it worth it? I don't want to read a couple thousand pages only to lose interest ...
posted by futility closet at 5:38 AM PST - 18 comments

Name That Film: Black-n-white, I think, maybe set in Prohibition era (U.S.), a comedy about a big, good-natured (but not so bright) fellow who finds work as a loan collector and then somehow gets involved with polticians, finally ending up as a puppet mayor or somesuch (which of course doesn't last long.) Good fun and very cynical (especially for its time.) T'anks!
posted by Shane at 5:35 AM PST - 9 comments

A neighbor has an adult Maine Coon cat that moved into their home. I just lost my cat. The neighbor will be moving next summer and does not want another animal. This is an mellow affectionate cat that is comfortable around any dog that accepts him. He is skittish around me now. How do I convince him that I am a good guy and he should move in with us?
posted by Penguin at 5:31 AM PST - 21 comments

I use to play a pretty simple game on an old computer of mine - I even played it once on a game boy. I can not recall the name of it but the play is simple. You control an arrow that can move forward, back, left & right the object is to move this arrow and connect the line you produce before a ball that is bouncing around touches you. You advance to the next level when you cover a specific amount of the given area.. 50 % 60 % etc .. as you move up the rankings they add more bouncing balls to make the game harder.. What is the name (s) of this game?! and are there any free versions out there for my PC and or Treo 650. Thanks!
posted by crewshell at 3:59 AM PST - 13 comments

E-Books: Those who get them, what's the best PDA for them? Or are they all pretty much the same? [more inside]
posted by Dagobert at 3:35 AM PST - 9 comments

Where can a current IT student find more info about going into the Graphic Design field? Does anyone have suggestions for a good Graphic Design college or program, preferably in North Carolina? [more inside]
posted by aristan at 12:34 AM PST - 12 comments

Can I do a modem data connection over voice-only CDMA digital cell phone? How about other data/SMS/email hacks? [more inside]
posted by loquacious at 12:15 AM PST - 9 comments

Where's the best place in New York to get a tattoo? [more inside]
posted by hellbient at 12:00 AM PST - 11 comments

For Christmas, my roommate bought me an internal LG DVD+R/RW drive. The trouble is that I have a G3 iBook (900 MHz, the last model produced before they went G4). From my scouring, it seems that Roxio Toast 6 is the latest bit of software to support G3 Macs. Will that, along with a firewire/USB2 enclosure to make it act as an external drive, be all I need to pirate like mad? Follow up question: Where would I be able to find an enclosure in downtown Manhattan? Is it as simple as going to Radioshack? Please say it's as simple as going to Radioshack. Also, if forced to choose, is firewire or USB2 preferable?
posted by incomple at 11:30 PM PST - 11 comments

Need furniture (wood) restoration tips I just made an unbelievable find in the trash on a sidewalk in manhattan (you wouldnt believe the things people throw out here). Its a solid wood restaurant butcher block table whch measures 24" X 24" X 10" thick! It weighs 85kilos / 190lbs !! I am really excited about restoring it. I have done some furniture restoration in the past but it always involved sanding the shit out of something until its bare again and refinishing it with a polyurethane or a stain of whatever flavor. In this case I think the butcher block has a lot of character (such as knife marks, dents and has also gotten a nice color from all the grease and oils it came into contact with) and I want to preserve that somehow. Its really dirty and kind of nasty at the moment. Can someone offer some suggestions about which solvents i can use to clean it thogroughly? I'm thinking denatured alcohol / mineral spirits but will that be tough enough to clean it?
posted by postergeist at 11:23 PM PST - 11 comments

How can I safeguard a Linux laptop with dial-up Internet access? [more inside]
posted by acoutu at 11:05 PM PST - 14 comments

Someone saw my pot. Am I headed off to jail? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 9:03 PM PST - 67 comments

I'm thinking about buying a Toyoto Scion TC and bidding adieu to my '97 VW Jetta. Any opinions or thoughts, stories or feelings on the Scion TC from current owners?
posted by xmutex at 8:44 PM PST - 9 comments

What's a good solution for storing wines for up to ten years? [more inside]
posted by nev at 7:24 PM PST - 4 comments

What's the bestselling video game of all time? Boring old Ask Yahoo! takes a very literal approach, offering Super Mario and Pac-Man. But if you think laterally, then shouldn't variations of Tetris, Solitaire and Snake be in the running? If you count all games on all devices and OEM bundles count as sales, what is the bestselling video game of all time?
posted by djacobs at 6:43 PM PST - 11 comments

I’d appreciate people’s advice as to whether I should join my firm’s Weight Watchers at Work program. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 6:41 PM PST - 18 comments

AdviceFilter: Help a 34 year old high school dropout start his education/career over. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 6:41 PM PST - 10 comments

I'm 22, female, and caucasian. I (try to) wear sunscreen every day. I use self tanner instead of tanning beds. What else do I need to be doing to keep myself looking young? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 6:40 PM PST - 40 comments

Money was tight for Christmas this year, and thus I asked Family and Friends to not get me any gifts, as I wasn't able to reciprocate. Inevitably, some did, and now I feel awful (as I knew I would) that I wasn't able to get them anything in return. So, I'm wondering if anyone can help me work out posthumous gifts I can make on a very tight budget. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 6:40 PM PST - 32 comments

This thread about cold sores has prompted me to ask some long-standing questions about them. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 6:39 PM PST - 12 comments

Tiny tee-shirts? [more inside]
posted by Marky at 6:34 PM PST - 8 comments

I am looking for a musical piece from the film "The Right Stuff" that is not on the musical soundtrack [more inside]
posted by goalyeehah at 6:32 PM PST - 3 comments

What the hell are these? [more inside]
posted by IndigoSkye at 4:59 PM PST - 33 comments

Can you use mail() in PHP without creating an unsecure, open mail relay boon to spammers everywhere? I keep trying to read This Page, and I think I understand it, but I'm not sure. [more inside]
posted by willnot at 4:30 PM PST - 9 comments

Need advice on selecting and implementing a file server for a small graphic design studio. [more inside]
posted by ads at 4:21 PM PST - 9 comments

My laptop has been everywhere and has proved to be very tough. Nonetheless, I think my hard drive may have died. Help me decipher this error message... [+] [more inside]
posted by moonbird at 4:03 PM PST - 12 comments

I recently had a baby boy and I have some music-related questions. [more inside]
posted by RustyBrooks at 3:43 PM PST - 19 comments

Tips/suggestions for shipping a car cross-country? [more inside]
posted by radioamy at 3:31 PM PST - 18 comments

What are some good sources of educational/workshop-type DVDs for use in teaching homeless clients life skills? [more inside]
posted by bloggerwench at 2:54 PM PST - 3 comments

Canadian Investment Loan Income Tax question. I get so sick of people telling me "You can write off the interest...." and then when I ask them what that means exactly... Silence. [more inside]
posted by TheFeatheredMullet at 2:37 PM PST - 6 comments

I have been asked to write recommendation letters for an undergrad who is applying to grad schools. Should I just automatically use a separate sheet, or should I use their form if they provide a lot of space? Any general tips for the structure of the letter? [more inside]
posted by 445supermag at 2:11 PM PST - 11 comments

Do women lose weight when they menstuate? [more inside]
posted by ChasFile at 2:00 PM PST - 19 comments

Gift for dear friends, who are stinky rich and have everything they want/need? Interests inside. [more inside]
posted by CaptApollo at 1:46 PM PST - 18 comments

I have rented an apartment in Prince Georges county in Maryland and signed a standard 1 year lease. It's been about 4 months and due to health reasons, I need to move to Florida. The lease says I can transfer the lease to someone else with written permission from the management. I found someone ready to take over my lease, but when I went to the management to find out the procedure, they said they would not do it. I pointed out the clause, she said that's only if they give me written permission and they would not do it. They have vacant units and they would rent out those. The lease agreement does not allow sub-leasing, either. What can I do?
posted by naveed at 1:24 PM PST - 14 comments

Good recommendations for a starter PA, liver mixer setup? [more inside]
posted by Tommy Gnosis at 12:54 PM PST - 10 comments

Film/TV question. I've seen LiveJournal avatars and pics that look like they're from a certain TV show or film, and I'm curious as to which film it could be. It looks like a very recent film. [more inside]
posted by spinifex23 at 12:52 PM PST - 14 comments

I need information and suggestions on dealing with the aftermath of a parent's death, specifically the disposal of house and possessions. [more inside]
posted by languagehat at 12:44 PM PST - 27 comments

Should an 11 year old be drinking coffee? [more inside]
posted by Xurando at 12:40 PM PST - 39 comments

I am planning to buy a new entry-level iMac with the built-in iSight and was wondering if anyone else has one already. What do you think about the machine? What kind of motion control do you have with the iSight, if any? (I'm an experienced Mac user, so I'm faimiliar with the OS already)
posted by cajo at 12:38 PM PST - 9 comments

Why, when you wake someone up, do they almost invariably deny that they've been sleeping? [more inside]
posted by leotrotsky at 12:20 PM PST - 23 comments

So I got a big bag o' peppermints in my stocking and I've been enjoying them. They've also got me thinking about making my own hard candies (peppermints, cinnamon drops, Worther's-like buttercream, etc..). The only problem is, just about everything I've been able to dig up centers more on chocolate or is shy on the basics. I picked up Candy Making for Dummies, but the closest that it gets is brittles. Anyone an accomplished or amateur candy maker and can point me to some solid introductory information. Also, does anyone know if you can use Splenda instead of sugar when making hard candies?
posted by Ikazuchi at 11:54 AM PST - 9 comments

DamnMusicStuckInMyHeadFilter: I am looking for a "holiday" piece of music that has been on the radio station playlists but for some reason no DJs will say what it is (I really hate that) [more inside]
posted by Botunda at 11:44 AM PST - 3 comments

A friend of mine has asked me to sell her beanie babies on Ebay, and I know nothing... [more inside]
posted by eas98 at 11:32 AM PST - 12 comments

I want to buy a new laptop, one that might be good enough to do stuff w/ digital video. Also, should I stick with Dell or is there another company w/ a good service plan? [more inside]
posted by kensanway at 11:10 AM PST - 15 comments

Hip-hop filter: What rap song has a chorus that goes something like, "I heard your record and I don't believe a word of it." [MI] [more inside]
posted by haqspan at 11:07 AM PST - 8 comments

How can I tell if an iMac Ethernet card is dead? [more inside]
posted by Grinder at 10:04 AM PST - 6 comments

Whenever I breath in and out really rapidly and loudly (just for fun), my cat goes bonkers. She starts rolling around the floor and meowing. Sometimes, if I'm sitting and she's across the room and I do it, she runs up to me and slaps me with her paw and runs away. Why does she do this??
posted by adrober at 10:04 AM PST - 20 comments

My wife has cold sores (for the first time). They have been there for about 10 days. She is uninsured and has tried Abreva and is taking L-Lysine with little success. We are new to living in the Boston area. She is getting pretty distressed about them. Can anybody recommend a Free Clinic in the Boston/Cambridge/Brookline area or somewhere where we can get cheap treatment?
posted by Hillman Cobs at 9:58 AM PST - 28 comments

Is there a way to cheat past a specific mission in GTA:SA? Lacking that, would someone be willing to take a copy of my GTA:SA game save and complete the Flight School mission for me? [more inside]
posted by chazlarson at 9:54 AM PST - 22 comments

The boy really liked McSweeney's Noisy Outlaws, Unfriendly Blobs, and Some Other Things.... He's in sixth grade, and is very sharp. Though he's recently really enjoyed some larger tomes, like the entire Narnia and Hitchhiker collections, he seemed to be entranced by this volume and I want to find him something similar. My apologies if some of this has been covered before, but can you think of anything that might please him as much as the Noisy Outlaws collection has?
posted by thejoshu at 9:39 AM PST - 18 comments

How close would a Near-Earth Supernova have to be to Earth to cause immediate surface effects? And what would those effects be? [more inside]
posted by Chanther at 9:36 AM PST - 11 comments

That thing where you capitalize all of the words in a phrase or sentence and put punctuation after them: Where. Did. It. Come. From? [more inside]
posted by transona5 at 9:14 AM PST - 11 comments

What does Washington DC do on New Year's Eve? Bonus points for under-21 or 21+ *wink wink nudge nudge* things. [more inside]
posted by borkingchikapa at 8:51 AM PST - 6 comments

How do you explain the "philosophy" of tagging to someone unfamiliar with computers? [more inside]
posted by stormygrey at 8:49 AM PST - 23 comments

I live in New York City and I've got some time off. What should I do? [more inside]
posted by AlisonM at 8:42 AM PST - 19 comments

CellPhoneFilter: I would like to get a PDA style phone that is able to function as a phone well while also giving me good access to web-features (email, txt, browser, even potentially messenger). Bluetooth would be required if the phone isn't easy to use held up to my face. Any carrier is cool. Does anyone have a glowing recomendation or a warning against certain devices? [more inside]
posted by aburd at 8:18 AM PST - 12 comments

Holiday Tipping Filter: I'm a few days late to the game on this, but I'm also not Christian, so I can use that as an excuse -- my roommate and I moved into our building 2 months ago and are trying to figure out how much we should tip our building manager and maintenance guy, both of whom are super nice and have gone out of their way to help us out on stuff. I say $50 each, she says $20. What do you mefites think? I'm especially curious about the building manager b/c I've never had one before.
posted by echo0720 at 8:00 AM PST - 20 comments

LateChristmasGiftFilter: My dad and his wife are really into their RV. Any ideas as to what I can get them for their RV. [more inside]
posted by nickerbocker at 7:59 AM PST - 6 comments

Why does hot water come out of a kitchen faucet with a milky and cloudy appearance while cold water comes out (same faucet) clear as a bell? No discernable difference in taste.
posted by punkfloyd at 7:52 AM PST - 22 comments

Can I make a profile in Firefox that will only surf to sites on an approved list? [more inside]
posted by katyggls at 7:51 AM PST - 4 comments

I've been put in charge of writing my company's Employee Handbook. Help me. [more inside]
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:42 AM PST - 16 comments

[OS X filter] There was a recent question about nice fixed-width fonts. I tried Bitstream Vera Sans on OS X and love it- I'd like to make it my new Terminal.app font. Unfortunately, the _ character does not display. Since a lot of the coders I work with use _ to seperate words in variable names, this is a big problem for me. Google turns up... my comment in the referenced thread, and that's it. Any other Mac users found a solution?
posted by bobot at 7:15 AM PST - 5 comments

Wanted: A bar in midtown NYC (between MSG and Grand Central preferred) that has good drink specials on Wednesday early evening.. [more inside]
posted by seinfeld at 7:03 AM PST - 6 comments

I just bought a house in St. Louis. Earthquake coverage or no?
posted by pieoverdone at 7:00 AM PST - 13 comments

Ok, that's it, I can't hold any longer - I'm gonna propose to my lucky girlfriend. But how? [more inside]
posted by wibbler at 5:43 AM PST - 35 comments

I ate a lot of rice pudding in WW2. Where did the rice come from? [more inside]
posted by priorpark17 at 4:59 AM PST - 21 comments

I just moved to San Francisco from Guadalajara, and have no credit history or bank account. How can I get a place to rent? A cell phone? [more inside]
posted by Dataphage at 4:16 AM PST - 7 comments

How does a laddie get on the internet to phone people up ?
posted by sgt.serenity at 4:11 AM PST - 7 comments

I'm having a problem with the chkdsk facility (windows xp). [more inside]
posted by booksprite at 3:26 AM PST - 4 comments

Anyone ever been on Later with Jools Holland or the Hootenanny? How did you get tickets? [more inside]
posted by jwhittlestone at 3:16 AM PST - 3 comments

DesignerApparelFilter: Oh, to dress like a 2002 Dogma movie star... [more inside]
posted by DawnSimulator at 12:37 AM PST - 2 comments

I am trying to set up my non-DirecTV TiVo to a DirecTV box. [more inside]
posted by ebeeb at 12:32 AM PST - 3 comments

Opinions on the best online online brokerage out there right now? I want to buy some stocks and do a little trading for myself away from my retirement account which is handled by a professional. Hard to pick between the big boys (e-trade, scottrade, etc.) or maybe there's a better option I'm not aware of. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
posted by BillBishop at 12:26 AM PST - 11 comments

Another podcast-filter question: These are somewhat popular threads, but I would like some recommendations for podcasts along some specific lines (More inside) [more inside]
posted by Holygrail2 at 11:27 PM PST - 7 comments

Can a person collect under both the Canada Pension Plan and U.S. Social Security, based on qualifying work in both countries? [more inside]
posted by Joleta at 10:21 PM PST - 2 comments

I have a huge number of Magic, Star Trek, and X-Files cards (well, not huge by some standards, but more than I'd like to admit to having). I haven't touched them 6 years or so. Needless to say, I want them gone. [more inside]
posted by devilsbrigade at 9:40 PM PST - 12 comments

Imagism experts: why is Ezra Pound's "In a Station of the Metro" so widely anthologized? [more inside]
posted by feathermeat at 8:50 PM PST - 13 comments

How I legally transport an open bottle cognac from Toronto to Boston? [more inside]
posted by duck at 8:36 PM PST - 14 comments

[GirlFilter] I know that questions about birth control are about a dime a dozen on here, and I've read most of the stuff that relates to IUDs, but I have some questions that I hope people here can help me with that I don't think have been previously addressed. [more inside]
posted by Medieval Maven at 8:08 PM PST - 17 comments

Men's Classic Fashion - A recommended book with lots of good pictures for tailored clothing [more inside]
posted by AArtaud at 7:45 PM PST - 3 comments

My wife and I are moving from Florida to Louisville, KY. What do I need to do or know to make the transition from warm to cold weather go as smoothly as possible? [more inside]
posted by superbird at 7:44 PM PST - 12 comments

Can a parent legally bug and record their underage children's phone calls?
posted by StickyCarpet at 7:05 PM PST - 16 comments

Songfilter: "Woke up this morning with my mind stayed on Jesus. Hallelujah." [more inside]
posted by Evstar at 6:40 PM PST - 5 comments

I'm in trouble w/ US Customs and a clothing manufacturer has begun sending me threatening letters for sending myself some knock-off clothing with their brand. Does anybody know anything about trademark law, or has anyone ever worked for customs? [more inside]
posted by KiddAnnica at 5:49 PM PST - 14 comments

I'm looking for objective information about the value of nuclear power. Specifically, how effective is it at generating power vis a vis its pollution A) quantity and B) um... vehemence? [more inside]
posted by ChrisR at 5:43 PM PST - 14 comments

TypePad + TypeLists + del.icio.us . . . need some help getting them to play well with each other. [more inside]
posted by donovan at 5:32 PM PST - 1 comments

iTunes help - Windows version, am confused as to how the library works. [more inside]
posted by jkaczor at 5:26 PM PST - 8 comments

How can I cash a third-party check? [more inside]
posted by designbot at 5:17 PM PST - 27 comments

My Dell-to-Dell hard drive transplant has been rejected, and I'm baffled. [more inside]
posted by raider at 4:51 PM PST - 9 comments

Sharing Outlook on a home network without using Exchange? [more inside]
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 4:43 PM PST - 6 comments

Does anyone know of some good free resources/articles on the web about recent case law, lawsuits, etc. involving people with disabilities vs federal agencies, state social service agencies and federally funded non-profits and faith based initiatives? [more inside]
posted by sophie at 4:38 PM PST - 4 comments

My laptop's hard drive is reaching capacity. How can I install a larger hard drive without having to buy a new version of Win XP Pro (which was pre-installed on the laptop when I bought it, and IBM will no longer send me a CD-ROM version of the OS at a reasonable price, since the machine is long out of warranty). If buying a new version of XP is the only option, how do I install it on the new hard drive (or will the laptop just boot to the installation CD-ROM if there's no OS installed when the power is turned on?)
posted by twsf at 4:28 PM PST - 17 comments

Can you identify the purpose of items in a Hindu festival kit labelled "Pujapa Samagri"? [more inside]
posted by Miko at 3:59 PM PST - 11 comments

Should I get my PowerBook's logic board replaced? [more inside]
posted by danb at 3:21 PM PST - 12 comments

I'm moving to New York City, and I need help deciding what to do with my condo. Should I lease it? Sell it? [more inside]
posted by dansays at 1:59 PM PST - 9 comments

What is the best brand / model of coastal sailing foul weather gear? [more inside]
posted by lucasks at 1:59 PM PST - 5 comments

Fundy-In-Law-Filter: My husband's sister and her husband are hard-core evangelical fundamentalists. We are liberal Episcopalians. This causes a problem every Christmas. What do you say when you get a gift that was clearly meant to make a point? [more inside]
posted by Biblio at 1:45 PM PST - 85 comments

DeadIpodFilter: My ipod I just bought 2 weeks ago is dead, 4th Gen. 30gb. I am just sick and deflated and destroyed. My power blinked off this morning and I know that has to be the culprit because it was working fine last night. Is this the end of it? Are it's insides fried?....more inside [more inside]
posted by jamie939 at 1:40 PM PST - 12 comments

LastMinuteTripFilter: What should i do in Reykjavík, Iceland for new years eve? [more inside]
posted by jba at 1:07 PM PST - 6 comments

I'd like to buy a cello for around $500. I know nothing about celli. [more inside]
posted by cortex at 12:40 PM PST - 18 comments

How can I tail a remote logfile without actually opening up an SSH connection each time? [more inside]
posted by neilkod at 12:06 PM PST - 13 comments

PetOwneratWit'sEndFilter: my cat is picky about the litter he will use. The dog loves to play in the litter and strew it around the floor. A covered litter box prevents dog from strewing litter all over the floor. The cat won't use the covered litter box. Is there a solution which will please all of us? [more inside]
posted by luneray at 11:58 AM PST - 15 comments

Can you help me eat a lot of meat fast? [more inside]
posted by horseblind at 11:51 AM PST - 47 comments

What kind of car is the safest to drive? There are lots of studies on which cars are best in a crash, but I suspect that some cars crash less often than others, so I am interested in statistics that take the rate of accidents as well as crashworthiness into account. [more inside]
posted by procrastination at 11:51 AM PST - 24 comments

Why do some people hate Andrew Lloyd Weber so much? [more inside]
posted by jca at 11:31 AM PST - 50 comments

I'm looking for a wiki I came across once. It had a button labeled "download entire wiki." One could download the contents of the wiki as static html pages with relative links. It wasn't Wikipedia. Can you help me find it?
posted by mecran01 at 11:15 AM PST - 15 comments

Help me fix my father's Outlook. [more inside]
posted by SassHat at 10:48 AM PST - 10 comments

I'm interested in buying a rug from this company. The rug was handmade in India. I know forced child labor in rug manufacturing is a big problem in India. Is there any way of knowing whether a particular company's Indian rugs are made by exploited children? I emailed the company to ask, but it would be better to know independently. [more inside]
posted by thirteenkiller at 10:20 AM PST - 6 comments

I'm a longtime PC user who is considering purchasing a Mac laptop for personal use. I'm relatively unfamiliar with Macs, and need advice! [more inside]
posted by charmston at 10:18 AM PST - 34 comments

How do I judge the electrical system in an apartment? [more inside]
posted by Caviar at 10:08 AM PST - 13 comments

Am I subject to penalties and fines if I'm not in compliance with New York State tax law, even though I do not work or live in New York State?
posted by brent at 9:47 AM PST - 12 comments

What is the History of English Language Capitalization? [more inside]
posted by freebird at 9:41 AM PST - 35 comments

My 3rd Gen (click-wheel) iPod: doesn't work on PC, seems to work on a Mac. [more inside]
posted by Mick at 9:39 AM PST - 9 comments

What can you tell me about claret? My boss gave me a bottle of it for Christmas - I'm not a drinker usually, but thought this New Years Eve I might try it. What do I serve it with and how is the best way to enjoy it?
posted by hollygoheavy at 9:00 AM PST - 20 comments

I want to forward mail from "mydomain.com" to "mycurrentisp.com" forever. I'm currently using MailShell to do this but they seem to suffer performance problems. What's the best way to accomplish this? [more inside]
posted by dhacker at 8:25 AM PST - 14 comments

What is the best way to do international transfers in order to get the best currency exchange rates and avoid excessive bank transfer fees? Transferring from the UK to Canada is costing me £20/transfer.
posted by srboisvert at 7:04 AM PST - 13 comments

I borrowed a Samsung digital camera, but I can’t get it to work with my computer. Please help. (Using XP) [more inside]
posted by crapples at 6:26 AM PST - 11 comments

What is the best approach to learn how to play bass guitar? [more inside]
posted by jeremias at 6:21 AM PST - 11 comments

I need help syncing my cell phone with my computer, or suggestions for a website that can help me. [more inside]
posted by MadamM at 12:56 AM PST - 5 comments

Weird things happen when I sleep. I thought this happened to other people too. Then, tonight, when I mentioned it to my mother she said, "No, that's never happened to me." What is it? Is there an explanation? [more inside]
posted by generic230 at 11:34 PM PST - 46 comments

Dealing with a loved one's Bipolar Disorder. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:12 PM PST - 29 comments

My next door neighbors are running an indoor marijuana farm. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:11 PM PST - 120 comments

Why did you choose to have a baby? I'm trying to get inside the mindset of people who are older than I am and in a very different part of their life. If you're someone who has always planned on having a family, why did you always plan on it and how do you feel about it now? If you never planned on a family and changed your mind, what made you change your mind? If you never planned on children but one come along by accident, how do you feel about them now? I'm looking for personal stories/anecdotes/opinions about it, not so much statistics or figures.
posted by twirlypen at 11:00 PM PST - 34 comments

What's your favorite waffle recipe? [more inside]
posted by heeeraldo at 10:24 PM PST - 13 comments

Why does my new video card cause a memory dump during boot? [more inside]
posted by muddylemon at 8:33 PM PST - 5 comments

Can I get homebrew software for my phone? [more inside]
posted by squidlarkin at 8:14 PM PST - 10 comments

Is it possible to fake someone's caller ID to place a crank call? [more inside]
posted by melixxa600 at 7:30 PM PST - 9 comments

My call forwarding service is over and done with and I need a new one. Help! [more inside]
posted by arimathea at 6:57 PM PST - 2 comments

Is there any simple program for Max OS X for taking telephone notes? I'd just like something that with a keystroke opens as a phone note template -- Who Called, Date, Status pop-up (like "Spoke" "Returned No Answer" "Returned Busy", etc.), and a place for notes. I'd like to have the messages kept permanently and be searchable. Thanks
posted by rabbus at 6:51 PM PST - 11 comments

CareerFilter: I'm a technical person (software developer/researcher) looking for/needing a career change to something creative. I've been thinking about filmmaking. [more inside]
posted by chos at 6:39 PM PST - 10 comments

there are, at least to my mind, many nefarious things going on in this country, at all levels. i recently voiced a specific complaint to a friend of mind. his reply was 'this is the way the 'man' wants it.' who is this 'man' anyway?
posted by brandz at 6:20 PM PST - 16 comments

Any biologists in the house? What would be a recommended book for identifying bacteria, pollen, and other nitnoy under a regular microscope? [more inside]
posted by chef_boyardee at 6:03 PM PST - 7 comments

Do you have a killer icing recipe? I'm making a cavalcade of cupcakes for my birthday next week and I want to make some yummy buttercream icing to go with. [more inside]
posted by sugarfish at 5:53 PM PST - 11 comments

Wizard shot the food! What do I need to synthesize a voice similar to that in the videogame "Gauntlet?" [more inside]
posted by fatbobsmith at 5:47 PM PST - 17 comments

Holy %#$!. I just priced out bulbs for our Proxima X350 video projector. The stores I looked at want $350, about equal to the price used projectors are going for on eBay. If I shell out $350, am I getting ripped off? Since when did it cost so much to make a light bulb?
posted by zek at 4:14 PM PST - 17 comments

Help with my new 100+ yr old blanket. [more inside]
posted by jdl at 4:14 PM PST - 5 comments

What are the best free online resources for 3-ball juggling? What about best books?
posted by Ekim Neems at 3:45 PM PST - 12 comments

Are there any good options these days for cheap/easy crosscountry travel? [more inside]
posted by afu at 3:15 PM PST - 16 comments

A friend of mine lives in an apartment in New York where for the last 8 or 9 months his downstairs neighbor has been harassing him. [more inside]
posted by heartquake at 3:00 PM PST - 25 comments

Where can I learn about dressing well as an overweight man? [more inside]
posted by callmejay at 2:50 PM PST - 17 comments

How can I use the IR port on my Windows XP laptop to control my television?
posted by punishinglemur at 1:47 PM PST - 6 comments

What is this song? [more inside]
posted by provolot at 12:56 PM PST - 17 comments

What's a good paint / drawing program for a 6 yo girl, on Windows XP? [more inside]
posted by beth at 12:42 PM PST - 17 comments

Laptop battery solutions: Should out-of-the-box battery life be the deciding factor in which laptop to purchase? Or are there reasonable workarounds? [more inside]
posted by poweredbybeard at 12:09 PM PST - 17 comments

Using Cold Outside Air to Reduce Refrigeration Costs: Why isn't this done? [more inside]
posted by ParisParamus at 11:19 AM PST - 25 comments

DIYfilter: We're re-tiling the kitchen countertop. Underneath is a one-inch thick stucco-like material, some of which broke and came out in chunks with the old tile. [more inside]
posted by fuzzy_wuzzy at 10:51 AM PST - 5 comments

can you recommend headphones (over the head) under $50 from amazon? [more inside]
posted by kewlio at 10:42 AM PST - 16 comments

I have the opportunity to buy an used x Wacom intuos graphics tablet to use with my photoshop program. It would cost about $85.00 with shipping. It is being offered on e-bay without the software that the owner says is free to download from the Wacom site. My question is to those of you with Wacom experiance, would it be better for a newbe to go for the more expensive (new) wacom to take advantage of the provided software and hard copy instructions or do you think a person that is reasonalbly technologically proficient with computers / downloading etc. be able to get up to speed using advice typically found on the internet? Thank you...
posted by orlin at 10:39 AM PST - 17 comments

Is there a place where I can download/watch Volkswagen New Beetle TV commercials of yore? [more inside]
posted by herrdoktor at 10:22 AM PST - 5 comments

Where can I get a script for my websites that will allow me to ask questions of the user, and then, upon completion of filling out the form, that user is redirected to a specific URL? [more inside]
posted by stst399 at 8:39 AM PST - 5 comments

I may be moving to the Metro West area of Massachusetts (east of Boston, west of Worcester). What's the coolest town in this area? Or, what are some resources that could help me make this determination for myself? Such as an equivalent to the NY Times' Real Estate Column: "If you're thinking of living in..."
posted by ericbop at 8:13 AM PST - 25 comments

Can anyone tell me how to make this .pdf print? [more inside]
posted by Makebusy7 at 7:43 AM PST - 6 comments

What's the best way to find freelance editing gigs? (Forget the websites like freelance.com, the rates offered are laughable.) I'm trying to find work online from reputable companies, any tips? I have experience and references, FWIW.
posted by ask me please at 7:33 AM PST - 6 comments

I'm trying to set up a very simple 2-PC network, with no networking experience, and I can't figure out why it won't work. [more inside]
posted by JanetLand at 6:51 AM PST - 12 comments

I need songs with the name "Alex" (or Alexander) in the title. The only one i can find is "Alex Chilton" by the Replacements [more inside]
posted by ShawnString at 6:31 AM PST - 19 comments

Where in the world can I find a company that will custom print some pencils for me? I need to get pencils printed with something different on each of the faces. Ideally I would provide a image (either separate for each side, or one with each side detailed out) that would be aligned and printed on the pencil. [more inside]
posted by JonnyRotten at 4:05 AM PST - 3 comments

18 year old planning to start renting within a month or so. [more inside]
posted by Serial Killer Slumber Party at 12:21 AM PST - 15 comments

My wife is being falsely accused of falsifying a prescription. She is absolutely innocent, but the situation is complicated and her doctor's office manager is blatantly trying to get her into trouble. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:26 PM PST - 90 comments

How do I get over the guilt of estranging myself from my alcoholic mother? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:25 PM PST - 23 comments

Just how much are the customs/Department of Homeland Security people allowed to go through your personal information on your laptop? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:24 PM PST - 34 comments

Distilled: I want to know how to legally gather information on somebody. Expounded: Many moons ago, my parents had a serious row with infidelity when my stepfather admitted to a long-term affair. After much counseling, they were able to save their 15 year marriage, and in time seemed closer and happier than ever before. It was the sort of story that gave people some hope for humanity and renewed faith in the ability of people to make good. Now -- 8 years later -- the specter rears its head again... [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:24 PM PST - 16 comments

What breed dog is this? [more inside]
posted by thefinned1 at 9:41 PM PST - 19 comments

Help me figure out what is wrong with my laptop speakers. [more inside]
posted by msali at 8:41 PM PST - 5 comments

CheapVacationFilter: I want to take a cheap few-day vacation with my girlfriend. We're in Los Angeles. I'm wondering about this "Mexico" thing not too far away... [more inside]
posted by anonymoose at 5:14 PM PST - 22 comments

I'm going to be in San Francisco for three days at the end of the month - looking for specific shopping advice. [more inside]
posted by meerkatty at 4:53 PM PST - 8 comments

What's it like to live in Bozeman, Montana? [more inside]
posted by TorontoSandy at 4:23 PM PST - 11 comments

Help me choose a digital camera: Nikon D50 or Canon S2? I can't decide whether it's worth it to go DSLR. [more inside]
posted by josh at 4:00 PM PST - 42 comments

Is there a way to extract videos from the video iPod onto a Mac? [more inside]
posted by skylar at 3:51 PM PST - 3 comments

How to seek voice-over work? [more inside]
posted by TeamBilly at 3:38 PM PST - 10 comments

Does anyone have any polite advice on driving from central new jersey to jfk airport so to get there for a 7:00 am flight? [more inside]
posted by ProfLinusPauling at 2:53 PM PST - 7 comments

Meeting strangers in Tokyo [more inside]
posted by LongDrive at 12:22 PM PST - 8 comments

GermanActressFilter: Looking for the name of a german actress. I only have some vague info :-/ [more inside]
posted by slater at 11:23 AM PST - 9 comments

We've really screwed the pooch this year..... [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:18 AM PST - 80 comments

Help identify this bizarre Christmas morning Easter movie... [mi] [more inside]
posted by sarahmelah at 10:39 AM PST - 3 comments

My organization of less than 40 needs an email only host. I am having a difficult time trying to google something as they all seem a bit generic and not someone I'm familiar with. Any suggestions? We just need IMAP and quota notification and about 1GB per person (give or take). Yahoo's is perfect except they don't have IMAP.
posted by _zed_ at 9:42 AM PST - 20 comments

Dry cleaners help! I brought a pair of very expensive formal pants to the cleaners after one wearing (they had a stain in them). They got the stain out, so I didn't try them on for about a month. Tried them on today and they are two inches too short and won't fit around the waist. [more inside]
posted by geoff. at 9:04 AM PST - 8 comments

We gave our dogs a couple of rawhide bones for Christmas. The girl dog (chow/ lab mix supposedly) has gnawed it down to a nub and carries it around in her mouth room to room crying and whining, basically, pacing our small house. [more inside]
posted by TheLibrarian at 8:27 AM PST - 12 comments

MTBFFilter: Why is Microsoft's mouse scrolling mean time between failures different for scrolls towards the user vs. scrolls away from the user? As seen here. [PDF] [more inside]
posted by disillusioned at 12:40 AM PST - 16 comments

(Brooklyn, NY) Where can I find classes for simple things, like automotive repair? I remember there was a time when the local community college held classes like this. But I can't seem to find any in Brooklyn. [more inside]
posted by erd0c at 12:21 AM PST - 3 comments

Can I connect to several printers via a USB hub through an Airport Express? [more inside]
posted by DannyUKNYC at 11:28 PM PST - 3 comments

wifi password question: I'm at a relative's for the holidays. She has wifi throughout her house but does not remember the password. Her computer however, does. How do I get the computer to tell me what the password is? It's a windows machine.
posted by garethspor at 9:50 PM PST - 10 comments

What coffee shops are open on Xmas eve in the LA / Burbank area? [more inside]
posted by cowmix at 9:39 PM PST - 4 comments

How can I get cat hair out of my fleece jacket? [more inside]
posted by silentd at 8:30 PM PST - 6 comments

iPodFilter: My iPod bit the forbidden apple. [more inside]
posted by Count Ziggurat at 8:17 PM PST - 6 comments

Sunday New York Times, probably November 27th, an article about urban games, possibly on the front page? [more inside]
posted by cloudscratcher at 7:47 PM PST - 9 comments

Is Zicam safe to use? [more inside]
posted by skallas at 5:25 PM PST - 15 comments

Recommendations for a good place to buy (expensive) earrings in Chicago - downtown/loop area, on December 28th? (And yes, Tiffany & Co has a store on Michigan Avenue, but I'm looking for a place with less attitude and more value.)
posted by WestCoaster at 5:03 PM PST - 5 comments

I've gotten my 5 year old a 1/2 size guitar for Christmas. I remembered as he picked it up for the first time from under the tree this morning- that he is left handed. I'd like to be able to teach him the basics. Should I restring the guitar for a leftie, or teach him to use his right hand for strumming? What do most left handers do? Should I train him Jimmy Hendrix style?
posted by Dag Maggot at 3:11 PM PST - 32 comments

I'm looking for an external battery for my 5G iPod. Less than $100, at least five hours, the smaller the better. Any suggestions?
posted by JPowers at 3:08 PM PST - 4 comments

For Christmas I am giving my ex-girlfriend (who i am still very close with) a copy of the PostSecret book. I would like to write something nice to her on the inside cover but I'm coming up blank. Help me out.. [more inside]
posted by MJaffaDMB at 2:37 PM PST - 8 comments

Does anybody know what this says, or at least what language it is? Stastne vianocne sviatky vrodinnom kruhu a v novom roku vela zdravia a spokojnosti praju LIZAKOVCI. My girlfriend received it in a text message from an international number, and we are both perplexed. It doesn't appear to be Polish or Russian. [posted for kyleg who has used his weekly AskMe and posted to MetaChat. The agreed possibility of the language is Slovak.]
posted by Frisbee Girl at 1:00 PM PST - 9 comments

How do folks handle archiving paper documents like personal correspondence (the snail mail kind), journals and the like? I have about 17 years worth of stuff and am trying to conceptualize of some sort of project to be able to look back on different years at a glance. BTW, it's not like I'm one of the Collyer brothers--all told, we're probably talking about 4 boxes of letters and such that I've saved over the years. I was thinking of organizing something chronological, using something like magazine files but I'm curious to hear how other folks organize and archive their stuff. Special bonus question--what about electronic documents, like emails and things you write? I know, I could store them online forever, but what's neat about old fashioned paper is that the reader and the information are self contained. Do you print things out, and again, if so, do you have any tricks for storing them?
posted by teddyb109 at 12:56 PM PST - 9 comments

Where can I get affordable household stuff near Santa Barbara, California? My boyfriend and I just moved here and we need furniture. [more inside]
posted by k8t at 12:29 PM PST - 4 comments

FrenchYoungAdultFictionFilter: back in the early 1980's, I bought a contemporary novel at Brentano about a young French girl-woman. It was a paperback. [more inside]
posted by younggreenanne at 11:36 AM PST - 6 comments

How do I properly print out jewel cases? [more inside]
posted by clearlynuts at 11:25 AM PST - 3 comments

What is the catch for uploading to Google Video? It looks like a great place to share one's own videos, but what are the cons of posting videos there (letting Google eat all the bandwidth costs) instead of on my own site? Why not move all of one's multimedia content there?
posted by shannymara at 11:10 AM PST - 23 comments

I'm going to be teaching a 5 week (30 contact hours) of intro web design as part of a larger digital art class. I'm planning to use text based as opposed to wyswyg tools (no dreamweaver). I'm trying to decide on what software to use. It's an OSX lab. [more inside]
posted by puppy kuddles at 11:09 AM PST - 21 comments

I have a Micro ATX Celeron 900mhz 512MB RAM WInXP Pro. It crashes completely (blank screen, reset required) when ever I open an Office document or try to access any website. [more inside]
posted by kenchie at 10:07 AM PST - 7 comments

What resources exist for non-techy social scientists who want to use relational databases to store their data, but don't know how? [more inside]
posted by jacobm at 9:40 AM PST - 7 comments

The personal aide to a President, other politician, and certain other muckety-mucks is sometimes known as a "body man". (This usage was popularized, but not invented, by Charlie's role in The West Wing.) Why "body man"? Does anybody know the origin/etymology of the term?
posted by willbaude at 8:29 AM PST - 13 comments

We screwed up the timing for preparing our turkey. How can we thaw and brine by tomorrow without risking bacterial contamination? [more inside]
posted by maudlin at 8:16 AM PST - 12 comments

Can anyone give me some advice on where to get Hanukkah/menorah candles today, here in Salem, Oregon? Specifically, anyone know if the big box stores, or Hallmark, etc. are carrying them. Normally me mum has sent them but not to be this year...
posted by docpops at 7:44 AM PST - 12 comments

Help me set up a printing system for the whole family... [more inside]
posted by lemonfridge at 6:40 AM PST - 5 comments

What to do in Greensboro, NC on Christmas Eve Afternoon? [more inside]
posted by matkline at 5:55 AM PST - 2 comments

Actual "on a wall" type wallpaper question. Previous owners put up a 24" pickett fence border around the bottom of a bedroom that just will not come off. [more inside]
posted by sandra_s at 4:53 AM PST - 16 comments

Alternative colleges, universities, and other forms of post-secondary learning worldwide - any suggestions? [more inside]
posted by divabat at 4:02 AM PST - 26 comments

Given our current state of technology and the world's nuclear armaments, I ask the question that the world needs an answer to: Could we destroy Mars? [more inside]
posted by TwelveTwo at 2:42 AM PST - 47 comments

While reading this excellent thread, an interesting question popped into my mind - why was bloodletting so popular for so long when it so obviously doesn't work? [more inside]
posted by Afroblanco at 11:03 PM PST - 27 comments

I'm looking for nominations for the Best Use of Hoots, Hollers, and Grunts for Male Rock Vocalists. These would include the most fantastic utterances that are not typically part of the lyrics. Hooooo. Ha! [more inside]
posted by strangeleftydoublethink at 10:27 PM PST - 61 comments

I have no coding skills, but I have an idea for a really usefull san francisco based google maps hack... [more inside]
posted by atom128 at 9:39 PM PST - 5 comments

I am looking for reasonably well-known websites that deal with government corruption. I live in the United States, so I have a particular interest in any US corruption, but I'm interested in other countries as well. Logically, it is easy to find information on corruption of countries we don't like, so I'm mainly looking for websites dealing with the US and its allies. (more info inside) if you know of any respected political websites that issue indepth reports on various things like human rights (Human Rights Watch for example) or that release declassified documents and memos not necessarily from the us, but the US is great too ( http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv for example) then tell me [more inside]
posted by VillainousJester at 9:35 PM PST - 10 comments

Help! Need family friendly activity in Orange County - Los Angeles area for Dec. 24. Otherwise, wife will kill me. [more inside]
posted by frogan at 7:31 PM PST - 19 comments

Is there an application for Internet Explorers on Windows that will let you click on or select a page element and view the cascading css rules that are being applied to that element? (Something similar to the Web Developer toolbar for Firefox or Xyle scope for Safari).
posted by alan at 6:33 PM PST - 7 comments

Why is a blank stare and a quizzical, staccato head-tilt to the left or right Hollywood shorthand for "I am inhumanly evil/possessed by a demon/a liquid metal killing machine/a humanoid but emotionless android", amongst others? [more inside]
posted by Jon Mitchell at 5:34 PM PST - 20 comments

I have a family member who has recently been diagnosed with bipolar disorder type 2. The psychiatrist has prescribed them 1000 mg of Depakote a day, what is the average prescription if anyone knows? Is this a lot or only a minor dosage? [more inside]
posted by nosophoros at 4:22 PM PST - 13 comments

I'm looking for a charity related to rebuilding New Orleans to donate to as a gift to someone that used to live there and was heartbroken by the hurricane aftermath. The Red Cross or United Way seem too big and non-specific. I'd like to give to something with a bit more direct impact on improving things there. Suggestions?
posted by mathowie at 4:14 PM PST - 7 comments

Can you recommend a good drip coffee maker? Most important criterion: Makes HOT, lip-scalding coffee. [more inside]
posted by Brian James at 3:52 PM PST - 18 comments

I just started a new relationship.. It's phenomenal and we've both felt that we're in love. I care deeply for her, but I don't know how to tell her about the fact that I have Herpes. Does anyone have advice on how to break the news? [more inside]
posted by bhenry at 3:21 PM PST - 21 comments

We just bought a new house. The good news: the house has a front and back yard, which we have never had before. The bad news: the previous owners did not take good care of the lawn. Help! [more inside]
posted by Lokheed at 3:16 PM PST - 8 comments

I'm looking for an image from the Corona beer commercial... [more inside]
posted by slim at 3:01 PM PST - 4 comments

Game controllers for the PC? Tell me about them? [more inside]
posted by orthogonality at 1:43 PM PST - 26 comments

ReligionEthicsFilter: in all the Apocalypse/Rapture stuff, planes will crash and cars and trains, etc, because the drivers will have been swept up. Doesn't that mean that Christians shouldn't do those things, esp if other people will be harmed as a result? [more inside]
posted by amberglow at 1:14 PM PST - 33 comments

ChrismukkahFilter! My sister's asked me to help on Xmas/Hanukkah by grating the potatoes and onions for the latkes ahead of time. Help me avoid the dreaded oxidation. [more inside]
posted by scody at 12:52 PM PST - 13 comments

I have a friend who constantly medicates herself with OTC medications/remedies as a source of comfort. Is this hypochondria? [more inside]
posted by aebaxter at 12:02 PM PST - 12 comments

What are some products that are made/comfortable for people with large hands? Computer specific, but anything else would be cool. [more inside]
posted by pantsrobot at 11:38 AM PST - 3 comments

What's eating me? Much, much, [more inside]
posted by daver at 11:25 AM PST - 42 comments

What's the best overland route between Salt Lake City, UT and Orlando FL? A friend has just moved out of state for work, and he needs me to drive his car out for him. So I'm hopping in the car early Friday morning and driving from Salt Lake City to Orlando... MORE INSIDE [more inside]
posted by silusGROK at 11:10 AM PST - 9 comments

Emergency help needed in London, who do we call? [more inside]
posted by mosch at 11:03 AM PST - 26 comments

LexusSC300Filter: The headlight on my 1993 Lexus SC300 is slowly filling up with water. How can I fix this without buying a new light? [more inside]
posted by richardhay at 10:25 AM PST - 4 comments

Help me protect my new digital camera (Rebel XT) with a case or skin or something. [more inside]
posted by Mid at 10:21 AM PST - 29 comments

For the past two days, I have noticed that my mouse cursor will move itself and point to the systray. I've never had this issue before so I am extremely confused over it. Does anyone know what it could be? Thanks!
posted by smoothie at 10:09 AM PST - 10 comments

MolecularBiologyFilter: How can knocking out one copy of a gene have the same effect as a mutation that leads to increased activity? [more inside]
posted by greatgefilte at 10:05 AM PST - 17 comments

designfilter How do I go about creating a Photocopy-Proof background for a document? [more inside]
posted by medium format at 9:57 AM PST - 6 comments

All about blogs. - I, like many others, began blogging on blogger... I find that I want to do more with my blog and I would like to move to a better service... I love Typepad but I do not want to pay for ithe service..... I have heard good things about Wordpress.... any other suggestions...?? Also, I read that it was possible to move my blogspot entries to my new blog, can anyone guide me through this process or can anyone refer me to a site that does? TIA!
posted by libelula at 9:57 AM PST - 18 comments

How do I change my From address in Outlook/Exchange? I have a regular old e-mail account and also a forwarding address that I like better; I want recipients of my e-mail to see (only?) my forwarding address. [more inside]
posted by j.s.f. at 9:21 AM PST - 4 comments

Help me find two super-rare 1980's recordings from Dallas/Ft. Worth-area bands: My Three Sons and The White Shapes. [more inside]
posted by mds35 at 8:58 AM PST - 15 comments

Why do people dislike Paul McCartney so much? [more inside]
posted by riffola at 8:34 AM PST - 92 comments

How can I autoforward my Gmail messages labelled as "SPAM" [more inside]
posted by labnol at 8:19 AM PST - 5 comments

Is there some sort of mental disorder, syndrome or condition that causes people to prefer eating off OTHER people's plates? [more inside]
posted by grumblebee at 7:38 AM PST - 39 comments

I found a lump in my underarm earlier in the week which has since disappeared, leaving me to believe the doctor was right and it was a cyst. My doctor (just to be on the safe side) ordered blood work and I had my blood drawn on Monday. Now it's Friday and I haven't heard my results. [more inside]
posted by obeetaybee at 7:04 AM PST - 20 comments

I need recommendations for a web host for serious (personal/hobby) coding. Everything I've seen so far requires compromises between flexibility and affordability. [more inside]
posted by ny_scotsman at 7:03 AM PST - 13 comments

All of a sudden, my dish-washing machine no longer works. [more inside]
posted by Jon-o at 6:38 AM PST - 11 comments

Here's a real simple problem that's been annoying me since I switched to Windows XP. If I have a folder that's full of mp3 files, XP "intelligently" decides that it's a music folder and changes the "Arrange icons by" options from "name/type/size/modified" to "name/type/size/artist/album title/year/track number/duration". Importantly missing is MODIFIED! How do I tell XP to sort files by date modified if it insists on only letting me sort by the ID3 "year" value?
posted by rxrfrx at 6:11 AM PST - 9 comments

What sorts of English-speaking jobs are available in Germany? [more inside]
posted by TunnelArmr at 4:25 AM PST - 7 comments

PSPFilter: I recently received a Playstation Portable for Christmas, and I want to "homebrew" the thing so I can play games, movies, etc. I've been reading up on how to do this, but my version is 2.01, and what I've read so far leads me to believe it to be an impossibility. Anyone try this with v. 2.01? [more inside]
posted by zardoz at 3:12 AM PST - 6 comments

I once watched a comedy variety show on a plane that featured, among others, a guy who could move his nose around his face in an astonishing variety of ways... it's as if it had a life of its own. Try as I might, I can't find him on the web -- any ideas? Thanks.
posted by shivohum at 2:55 AM PST - 6 comments

I'm looking for a download of Christmas songs performed at the 1978 Children's Psychiatric Hospital Christmas Concert. Anybody have a copy? [more inside]
posted by quacky at 2:33 AM PST - 4 comments

What are your favorite Christmas tunes? [more inside]
posted by Manjusri at 2:16 AM PST - 46 comments

On Windows XP, I have a problem deleting an .avi file. Please help? [more inside]
posted by Meatbomb at 1:27 AM PST - 13 comments

has anyone ever tried pendulum dowsing? whats it all about?
posted by deeman at 10:50 PM PST - 15 comments

Is eating cheese made from unpasteurised milk dangerous? If so, to whom? [more inside]
posted by unSane at 10:19 PM PST - 15 comments

My employer has a knack for finding the oddest Christmas presents for the staff. This year: a heat bag. How does it work? [more inside]
posted by Termite at 9:52 PM PST - 14 comments

Help me decide on a project... [more inside]
posted by jackofsaxons at 9:35 PM PST - 12 comments

I've installed Firefox version 1.5 onto my computer (the original version was already on there), but the "bookmarks bar" isn't showing up. I thought it was a feature on this version. What gives?
posted by Oh Indeed at 8:33 PM PST - 5 comments

Bourgeois furniture value question(s). [more inside]
posted by iconoclastic flow at 7:59 PM PST - 6 comments

Is the "ideal" HDTV coming? [more inside]
posted by robbie01 at 7:53 PM PST - 17 comments

My wife and I are bored, but we can't think of any good games for couples. Is there anything out there? [more inside]
posted by oissubke at 7:41 PM PST - 53 comments

Is my ebay item lost in the mail? [more inside]
posted by frankie_stubbs at 7:39 PM PST - 14 comments

I just got a $50,000 home equity loan to remodel our kitchen, but we might not pay the contractor for 3 months. Can I do anything with the money to make a little interest, at least to cover the 5.9% interest, before then? Right now it's in our savings account. [more inside]
posted by luriete at 7:37 PM PST - 7 comments

My father is hard of hearing. I'm looking for suggestions regarding easy audio devices that will let him listen to the TV at the volume he needs, but also let the rest of the family enjoy the program at a more reasonable volume. [more inside]
posted by Galvatron at 7:29 PM PST - 9 comments

I want to develop an education curriculum to teach kids (smart 9th graders to adults) about scale. That is, I want people to realize exactly how small things like atoms, photolithographed conduits and electrons are, and how large galaxies are. [more inside]
posted by arrhn at 7:23 PM PST - 13 comments

Starting your career at 30... [more inside]
posted by speranza at 7:16 PM PST - 16 comments

MOR-filter! I'm trying to find a Steve Forbert song released before 1991 featuring lyrics about being hung/washed out/up etc.. [more inside]
posted by oxala at 7:12 PM PST - 2 comments

I am in intermediate sculptor and am looking for someplace to find a good piece of wood to carve, such as curly maple, walnut or mahogany. I live in the Philadelphia area and would love to find a shop here or someplace on the internet. Any suggestions?
posted by lag at 7:09 PM PST - 6 comments

I want to photograph the night sky, and I don't know how with my camera. [more inside]
posted by thecjm at 6:39 PM PST - 14 comments

Song Identifcation Filter: I heard a song on KCRW within the past few days that lifted the melody (just the note sequence, it wasn't sampled) from Kraftwerk's "Computer Love". It had a male vocalist and the last words he sang were "Let's talk". Searching playlists on KCRW has been fruitless, but I remember hearing the Dresden Doll's "Coin Operated Boy" shortly before or after this track.
posted by phrontist at 6:17 PM PST - 10 comments

I'm looking for recommendations for a good music download service that allows me to download mp3s to my pc without having to install software (e.g. iTunes...). The larger the library the better. Thanks. [more inside]
posted by batou_ at 6:08 PM PST - 24 comments

Quicktime / itunes installation problems: [more inside]
posted by bigmusic at 5:59 PM PST - 1 comments

Will Dell's prices go up or down after Christmas? In January? [more inside]
posted by ScottMorris at 5:57 PM PST - 26 comments

Hi I would like to send email newsletters to my clients (about 100) and would like to do it all in-house. Are there good programs or tools to do this. If possible, I would like to know who reads it (I know ... privacy) by using images? / some sort of tracking if possible. Any ideas?
posted by bright77blue at 5:53 PM PST - 6 comments

Apple thinks I've registered an iPod. I haven't. Do I bother correcting them? If so, how? [more inside]
posted by electric_counterpoint at 5:37 PM PST - 7 comments

What are some "little known" countries that are worth visiting? [more inside]
posted by damnjezebel at 5:35 PM PST - 34 comments

Credit woes: How bad is 30 days late? [more inside]
posted by surferboy at 5:08 PM PST - 15 comments

Do non-European people know where the Netherlands are? [more inside]
posted by davar at 3:31 PM PST - 64 comments

I just got a speeding ticket in my good ol' hometown in Colorado. Ordinarily, not such a strange thing. But now I reside in California. I have a court date. What do I do? [more inside]
posted by symphonik at 2:52 PM PST - 19 comments

Present Filter: What does a 13 year old girl want for a Christmas present from a 30 year old male friend of the family? [more inside]
posted by trbrts at 2:50 PM PST - 29 comments

I have a list of coordinates (in [x,y] format), and they define the perimeter of a shape. I can't quite work out an algorithm for drawing round the perimeter of this shape, without crossing the shape. Google has failed me, and my A-level in maths is all but a hazy memory now... Algorithm gods, your time is now! [more inside]
posted by gaby at 2:25 PM PST - 5 comments

I need a recommendation for a 802.11g pcm/cia card. [more inside]
posted by starscream at 2:19 PM PST - 4 comments

Is there a traditional Muslim/Islamic toast for the New Year?
posted by Heatwole at 2:14 PM PST - 7 comments

Can you buy power strips in the US that have separate on/off switches for each socket? [more inside]
posted by holgate at 2:10 PM PST - 15 comments

On the topic of songs with robots and warped vocals, I seem to remember a video of Bender from Futurama to the tune of "Dirty Robot" by Arling & Cameron (from their "We Are A&C" album). Did I just dream this or did it really exist? If so, where? Bonus points for providing a link to media.
posted by kuperman at 1:30 PM PST - 4 comments

Is there software available that lets me use tagging (a la del.icio.us and Flickr) to tag Word (or other) files on my local computer? Here's the scenario. I am new to a job where I write a lot of reports. Although these aren't cookie cutter reports, it is often helpful to look at old reports when writing new ones. I would love to be able to organize them by overlapping themes so the collection of files is more useful to me. Instead of reinventing the wheel, I'd like to be able to plug in a few tag words and find just what I need. Can you help?
posted by abbyladybug at 1:28 PM PST - 15 comments

i am thinking of getting a battery recharger and am asking if this particular type/model http://www.battery-recharger.com/ works well thank you
posted by robbyrobs at 1:10 PM PST - 2 comments

MusicFilter: What's this song - the only lyrics I can recall are "Mila Hoo Mila Haa" or something like that, which is the chorus. It's techno, robot-like/warped vocals, loud bass, and I've seen people dance the robot to it.
posted by lpctstr; at 1:10 PM PST - 7 comments

Is it a bad idea to do (1 hour of) yoga and (1 hour of) weight training and (30 minutes of) cardio all on the same visit to the gym? If it is not a bad idea, what's the best ordering of the three?
posted by about_time at 1:02 PM PST - 18 comments

What happens when a Hybrid car (i.e. Prius) runs out of gas? Can it keep driving on the battery? [more inside]
posted by clgregor at 12:30 PM PST - 10 comments

I'm looking for a particular Rowan knitting pattern -- does anyone have a copy of "The Bigger Picture" handy? [more inside]
posted by clever sheep at 12:22 PM PST - 2 comments

Are there any other Windows MP3 players that have something like RealPlayer's LivePause feature, which "enables pausing and seeking within live Internet clips"?
posted by smackfu at 12:22 PM PST - 2 comments

fontfilter: What are some cool fixed-width fonts for using with terminals, code editors, etc? [more inside]
posted by Paris Hilton at 11:48 AM PST - 22 comments

Spamhaus says my server is a spammer. How do I check to see if this is true and if it is, how do I stop it? Baring that, how can I prevent spamming in the future? [more inside]
posted by anonpeon at 11:34 AM PST - 6 comments

Does anyone know a good utility to rip the audio from WMV files? [more inside]
posted by ykjay at 11:11 AM PST - 5 comments

Is there any way to monitor the users or traffic on my wireless home network? [more inside]
posted by slogger at 11:09 AM PST - 7 comments

RealEstateFilter: Some friends and I are looking to create a real estate corporation to maximize our buying power while lowering our individual risk. [more inside]
posted by fenriq at 11:00 AM PST - 7 comments

Is anyone using blogs and wikis at work on a corporate intranet? I'd love to hear about how successful they are? What kind of projects do you use them for?
posted by jonthegeologist at 10:54 AM PST - 12 comments

Tandy Electronic Sea Battle (retro Battleship rip-off): I just bought one for a quid, but there was no manual in the box. How do I make it work? Pictures inside. [more inside]
posted by nylon at 10:52 AM PST - 4 comments

A colleague is interested in doing some personal desktop publishing and bookbinding. He came to me and asked a few questions I couldn't answer offhand and don't have the terms to google efficiently. [more inside]
posted by George_Spiggott at 9:59 AM PST - 15 comments

Is your birthday on or near Christmas Day? If so, how do you feel about it? [more inside]
posted by peep at 9:41 AM PST - 49 comments

I've read plenty of good tutorials on CSS, but I don't understand how I could implement it on an existing website.
posted by madmath at 9:37 AM PST - 17 comments

Seeking contact info for the advertising agency responsible for IBM Middleware's "You VS [Concept]" campaign that has been appearing in glossy business mags lately... [more inside]
posted by vanoakenfold at 9:20 AM PST - 2 comments

Where to find rabbit meat and quail in Boston? [more inside]
posted by darsh at 8:53 AM PST - 8 comments

I'm going to ice a cake and the icing recipe calls for 1 tsp (5 mL) light corn syrup. Can I use honey instead? [more inside]
posted by cardboard at 8:51 AM PST - 13 comments

Does anyone have a link to (or a copy of) the famous 'Zulu War/Rorke's Drift' pastiche Silk Cut cigarette advert shown in British cinemas in the 1970s?
posted by timpollard at 8:50 AM PST - 1 comments

I've begun playing some casual Texas Hold'Em with friends (some of whom are far less casual). I don't really know what I'm doing. Thus far I am 15% ahead (of my cumulative buyin), but that's only be because I fold early and often. I mostly get into trouble when I play weak hands or try to bluff, so I don't tend to do either. I'd like some additional pointers. [more inside]
posted by jdroth at 8:50 AM PST - 27 comments

San Francisco Filter: What would you recommend as a local gift certificate for 2 people moving to San Francisco early next year? [more inside]
posted by true at 8:14 AM PST - 17 comments

How do I take decent home video? [more inside]
posted by selfmedicating at 7:58 AM PST - 18 comments

Help the underdog in the kitchen: I need to bring a dish to Christmas dinner with my in-laws. [more inside]
posted by cior at 7:42 AM PST - 28 comments

WaterHeaterFilter: How much shower-time should I expect from my new electric water heater? [more inside]
posted by grabbingsand at 7:15 AM PST - 16 comments

Help show me that Gödel's theorem isn't that big of a deal. [more inside]
posted by andrew cooke at 6:54 AM PST - 27 comments

Can anyone identify this commercial? Bonus points if you can steer me towards a download or stream that's not AdCritic. [more inside]
posted by tetsuo at 6:34 AM PST - 13 comments

Occasionally our university web site gets solicitations from link-swapping programs. Although they are reputed to increase one's search engine rankings, I believe that they are of dubious value (at best) as I'm sure that Google is aware that links from such places are not as valuable as "real links" from "real pages" and deprecates them accordingly. However, I don't have any real data or sources to back up my hunch. Can you point me to some - or, if I'm wrong - correct me regarding their value?
posted by spock at 6:28 AM PST - 3 comments

Wi-Fi for dummies: I have a brand-new AirPort Express. My iBook already has an AirPort card, and I'm about to set up a reasonably secure wireless connection at home (I have an iBook, OSX, and a Windows 2000 IBM laptop). Online resources are either pretty dry and technical (as I said, I'm not really a computer person) and some advice seems, frankly, a bit confusing. Can you point me to a good online tutorial for setting up the network? Thanks and happy holidays.
posted by PenguinBukkake at 6:22 AM PST - 10 comments

I'm thinking of joining the Navy. The main reasons are the training, marketability, and the experience. However, I'm not sure if the Navy is where I would want to be or if one of the other armed services would be more suitable for what I want. [more inside]
posted by pemdasi at 4:12 AM PST - 24 comments

Why is it that one can go into the library or a bookstore (Borders/B&N) and read for several hours without getting tired or distracted? And yet reading at home for half an hour can be a chore because your eyes get tired, or you fall asleep? Is "Full spectrum" lighting the answer? [more inside]
posted by Quami77 at 4:06 AM PST - 16 comments

In relation to this post on the subject of personal privacy: is there really good reason to be concerned? Is there any point in keeping personal information private anymore? [more inside]
posted by Acey at 4:01 AM PST - 13 comments

My brother lives in England and while he was visiting the states, he bought a PSP (playstation) Now that he's back in the UK, the psp needs to be recharged. He has the adapter from the UK (3 prong) to the States (2 prong), but needs an adapter from the States (2 prong) to the UK (3 prong) to charge it. [more inside]
posted by camfys at 12:59 AM PST - 14 comments

In an interview for a programming job today, I was asked to write out code for a programming problem on a whiteboard. After the interview, it's bugging me that I can't figure out the "optimal" solution that they said existed, but we didn't have time to discuss. [more inside]
posted by unsoulchum at 12:57 AM PST - 70 comments

I need to create an online portfolio for my small business. What are my do-it-myself options? [more inside]
posted by peppermint22 at 11:26 PM PST - 10 comments

What happens when two people with hyphenated last-names marry? [more inside]
posted by JZig at 11:00 PM PST - 31 comments

How often do you you change your sheets? (I'm specifically interested in single apartment-dwellers - if you're married, please feel free to contribute, but make a note of your marital status ... or ideally, note the difference between you as part of a married couple and as a single person). Thanks!
posted by Sinner at 10:44 PM PST - 59 comments

Should I use an exercise/balance ball instead of an office chair? Anyone done it? Is it actually comfortable for long stints at the computer? If so, what size should I get? [more inside]
posted by sirion at 8:23 PM PST - 16 comments

Firefox 1.5 on Win XP refuses to play streaming video. [more inside]
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 8:14 PM PST - 19 comments

CraftFilter: I want to start screening graphics onto tshirts, patches, hoodies, etc.... [more inside]
posted by whatitis at 8:10 PM PST - 6 comments

Is there a program that allows me to drag and drop (reorder) the buttons in the XP taskbar? Something similar to the Firefox drag and drop for tabs?
posted by masymas at 8:00 PM PST - 10 comments

MoneyFilter: Has anyone here ever sold their old school assignments (research papers) online? [more inside]
posted by sjvilla79 at 7:29 PM PST - 21 comments

When using google to get a link to a commerce site, what are the ramifications for clicking on the "sponsored links" versus clicking on the commerce site as it appears in the non-sponsored links, below the googe ads on the google results page? [more inside]
posted by aliksd at 7:25 PM PST - 11 comments

Anyone have any thoughts on Tankless Water Heaters, specifically gas ones however thoughts on electric ones too would be nice I guess. Distance to kitchen/shower? Ok to put one in a cold room such as a garage? Other important things to know about one before calling the plumber? [more inside]
posted by pwb503 at 7:19 PM PST - 24 comments

I put a 2x2" hole in someone's bumper the other day. Does one have to be insured to file a claim on someone else's insurance? and what do you think a brand new bumper for a shitty old Escort will cost me? [more inside]
posted by dthaspaz at 6:57 PM PST - 17 comments

How do I interpret the statistical results of an ESP test? At this ESP testing site there's a tabulation of the daily results of people from across the world attempting to guess which of 5 cards is a target card. In the results for 12/20/2005 the top scorer had 13 hits in 25 trials for a hit rate of 52%, random chance would be 0.20. Now the website says the odds against this are 2708 to 1. First question: is this correct? Second question: if it is correct, then how weird is this statistically speaking given that there were a total of 19,886 trials by 189 users. [more inside]
posted by storybored at 6:41 PM PST - 22 comments

Tonight at 7:00pm I had representatives of Quixtar come into my home. Should I join or not? Apparently by being an Independent Business Owner (IBO), I can make tons of money just through referrals. As a poor college student, this sounds enticing. [more inside]
posted by j-urb at 6:02 PM PST - 32 comments

Looking for suggestions for pieces of web site software to manage (1) user profiles and (2) a coming events calendar. [more inside]
posted by winston at 5:22 PM PST - 2 comments

The other day a few college - aged people came to my door (and everyone's in the nieghborhood) lobbying something political. I didnt talk to them but by dad said they made pretty good money doing that. Anyways, I am personally kind of obsessed with politics, and would be thrilled to have a job in the field of politics. My question is does anyone have suggestions on where to look or who to ask for a job? I am looking for a job that I can start right away, without any schooling etc. Something that doesnt take any special qualifications. [more inside]
posted by JokingClown at 4:58 PM PST - 19 comments

I found a topless picture of someone I know on a site. [more inside]
posted by 6550 at 4:31 PM PST - 52 comments

Where do I get a poem published? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:20 PM PST - 11 comments

Are there women's bathhouses in the US? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:20 PM PST - 8 comments

What is the best way to tell someone that you want to have a child with him? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:20 PM PST - 14 comments

Do you know of a web-based self-scheduling application or volunteer management system? [more inside]
posted by rudyfink at 4:13 PM PST - 8 comments

I am looking to make a pendant for my wife out of a favorite guitar pick... [more inside]
posted by Macduff at 4:00 PM PST - 21 comments

AlumniSiteFilter: I run the alumni site for my high school, and I'd like to put it on a decent back-end (its currently manually updated). Feature list and embarrassing photos inside! [more inside]
posted by softlord at 3:58 PM PST - 6 comments

As Withnail said in "Withnail & I"; "Look at my tongue. A grey yellow sock." [more inside]
posted by soundofsuburbia at 3:35 PM PST - 13 comments

Aside from not driving behind other vehicles, how do you keep ambient exhaust fumes out of your car cabin during a commute? Filters? Ionization? Impossible?
posted by parallax7d at 3:28 PM PST - 5 comments

I'm an eternal optimist. But, tsunamis, hurricanes, terroism (and threats), numbskull president, fanatic religion and politics, bird flu, war...stand out more than anything positive in 2005. What happened for the common good of the world and what do we have to look forward to in 2006 and beyond? (Both as a nation and a world?)
posted by ieatwords at 3:25 PM PST - 28 comments

How can I add sound effects to a Windows sound source in real time, and then pipe the input into Skype or other programs that expect direct input from the sound source? [more inside]
posted by jeffbarr at 3:00 PM PST - 5 comments

Where can I find a php developer to donate some time to a Peace Corps project? [more inside]
posted by brokekid at 2:46 PM PST - 6 comments

How do I clean up a voice recording? [more inside]
posted by blue_beetle at 2:34 PM PST - 21 comments

WebSecurityFilter: I'm looking for a PHP or CGI script which would redirect a user to their password protected folder when they enter their username and password. [more inside]
posted by DragonBoy at 2:33 PM PST - 4 comments

Spanish conversation: Ive spent some time abroad living in Spanish-speaking countries, and have been taking Spanish classes, but I still find it difficult to speak quickly in Spanish on command. Speaking after a few minutes is easy, though. [more inside]
posted by jare2003 at 2:26 PM PST - 5 comments

Perl regular expression question inside. Trying to parse a list of items... [more inside]
posted by pornucopia at 2:04 PM PST - 8 comments

I have 2 small questions about using KDE. [more inside]
posted by john m at 1:57 PM PST - 4 comments

PitifulPetOwnerFilter: My neighbors across the street are completely irresponsible pet owners, and I don't know what to do... [more inside]
posted by iurodivii at 1:57 PM PST - 39 comments

How do I find a non-teaching job in Japan? [more inside]
posted by dead_ at 1:49 PM PST - 9 comments

Can I create an Outlook 2003 rule or use a plug-in to flag all exernal emails? [more inside]
posted by hokie409 at 1:43 PM PST - 5 comments

Recommend a server hosting company that's reliable and responsive. I want to be able to upgrade my plan in a hurry. Also, a cheap mirroring service. [more inside]
posted by Imperfect at 1:24 PM PST - 21 comments

DV video compression question - Do I have to recapture all these tapes?! [more inside]
posted by squirrel at 12:53 PM PST - 9 comments

Who are the heavyweights of the academic ethnic entrepreneurship field? [more inside]
posted by tozturk at 12:36 PM PST - 5 comments

Book-filter: help me find a book called (I think) "Crummy Cars" [more inside]
posted by dbmcd at 12:11 PM PST - 8 comments

What can I do with a degree in Sociology? [more inside]
posted by pwally at 12:00 PM PST - 28 comments

Could the US government's efforts to scan the contents of everyone's email be overloaded by everyone routinely using encryption for every message? [more inside]
posted by pracowity at 10:57 AM PST - 34 comments

My girlfriend breathes very rapidly and loudly while she sleeps; not all the time, but often enough. She never stops breathing. But her breaths are short/shallow, rather loud (but not the same as a snore), very quick and the rate between breaths and the length of the breaths vary between just about every breath. Anyone know what's going on here?
posted by Witty at 10:18 AM PST - 21 comments

I run a fairly large Guild Wars fansite, using MediaWiki. Lately we've been having some database problems. Basically, mysql refuses to stay running for more than 10 seconds at a time, and occasionally complains of an InnoDB error, then exits with a signal 11. I've shut it down, run myisamchk, repaired, restarted, but it keeps coming back. Anyone care to lend a hand? After the repair, myisamchk doesn't show any errors on the table, or any others, but it always crops back up. We've tried everything from replacing the RAM in the machine, to completely rebuilding mySQL. Help! (last lines of mysql error log inside) [more inside]
posted by zerolives at 10:07 AM PST - 7 comments

I need a credit card with good benefits... [more inside]
posted by outsider at 10:04 AM PST - 22 comments

What can I get my wife for Christmas? I'm stuck so I'm thinking jewelery, but that kind of says "I couldn't think of anything else." [more inside]
posted by Mayor Curley at 9:16 AM PST - 39 comments

I've just installed Plone (www.plone.org) for a client on their server. They currently run their sites on Windows 2000 with IIS on port 80. I set up Plone to run on port 81, but what do I need to do to make this accessible to outside traffic? It is currently inaccessible to anyone outside the offices, and I'm afraid I have no expertise with IIS. [more inside]
posted by letterneversent at 9:14 AM PST - 2 comments

I'd like to get my uncle a nice and/or unique liqueur for Christmas. Does anyone have any suggestions for good liqueurs or good liquor stores in the Annapolis area where something like that could be acquired?
posted by emptybowl at 8:54 AM PST - 31 comments

Should I ask the farmer's permission before taking pictures on his field? [more inside]
posted by cgs at 8:50 AM PST - 48 comments

French language tv on the web? (more inside) [more inside]
posted by carlitos at 8:46 AM PST - 4 comments

Ever worked for a start-up? I'd like to hear about your experience and get your advice. [more inside]
posted by Sully6 at 8:44 AM PST - 24 comments

park slope brooklyn to newark airport by car service. how long should i give myself, given the transit strike [more inside]
posted by alkupe at 8:22 AM PST - 14 comments

On Thursday night, my stove's glass door exploded for no discernable reason whatsoever. Since MeFi's population encompass many trades, I'm hoping there's someone with a background in physics, engineering, or an appropriate tradesman who either knows or can venture a fairly educated guess as to why it happened. [more inside]
posted by WCityMike at 8:13 AM PST - 25 comments

So, at this late stage in the game (aka - Christmas Shopping), my Mom has expressed interest in the single-cup coffee makers such as the Senseo. She currently gets Gevalia coffee and says that they have one as well. The last I heard about these things, the coffee 'pods' were incompatible between brands, but otherwise they were very useful machines. I also vaguely remember hearing about one person who figured out how to make their own coffee pouches. Has anyone had experience with these machine and have any recommendations?
posted by Ikazuchi at 8:03 AM PST - 28 comments

Free (or very cheap) proxy server that runs on W2k3? We just need it to block access to internet for some, not for others. Optimally, would like it to be tied into Active Directory (W2k3) so we don't have to use new username/passwords. Any suggestions? About 60 user company. [more inside]
posted by aacheson at 7:39 AM PST - 6 comments

A practical way to learn Adobe Illustrator? [more inside]
posted by andrewzipp at 7:38 AM PST - 14 comments

AJAX: I have a project I'm building where I'd like to replicate the Google Maps click-and-drag UI, to view a very large graphic that's cropped so you can only view a section at a time. Any idea where I can find a tutorial on how to do that? [more inside]
posted by paulrockNJ at 7:37 AM PST - 2 comments

I read about a golf coffee table book in a magazine and I cannot find it now. It was a collection of photos of unusual situations, and the cover had people running from the green as a bear ran onto the course. Does anyone know what this book might be called? [more inside]
posted by cmicali at 7:34 AM PST - 1 comments

My 15 year old son is getting a computer for Christmas. Any way to reliably and safely limit his internet access without restricting it so much it makes it useless? [more inside]
posted by genefinder at 7:24 AM PST - 62 comments

Cognac Filter! Looking for a reasonably-priced ($20-$30?) but decent bottle of cognac to give as a gift. Not my drink so I don't know where to start.
posted by jalexei at 7:20 AM PST - 19 comments

What should I do in the car for a 20+ hour drive? [more inside]
posted by JPigford at 7:16 AM PST - 23 comments

India Bottled-Water Filter -- I noticed in India that Dasani brand is sold as "Kinley." Why? Does the word "dasani" mean something nasty in Hindi (or another Indian tongue)?
posted by nancoix at 7:05 AM PST - 25 comments

BottledWaterFi: For the same price and quality as regular brands would you buy a bottled water sourced from the Amazon Rainforest? And would it influence your purchase decision if the bottled water company (US) also conserved Amazon rainforest and biodiversity? [more inside]
posted by johoney at 7:00 AM PST - 27 comments

My laptop won't boot with the battery in, even when it's plugged in. Is it dead? [more inside]
posted by miniape at 6:08 AM PST - 9 comments

Washington DC, Bethesda, Chevy Chase....Off beat, ( off the mall too probably), things to do between Christmas and New Years. Bonus for vegan, macro, farmers market food ideas
posted by flummox at 5:02 AM PST - 11 comments

Can I build/run a web bot? [more inside]
posted by benjh at 4:27 AM PST - 10 comments

I'm a graduate student in computer science. It's often that I wish I had some form of painless version control for all the code and papers I produce. What should I use version control? How? Solutions need to be cross-platform and integration with Emacs is a big plus. [more inside]
posted by mge at 4:09 AM PST - 20 comments

Can anyone identify this song? (mp3 snippet, 154 kB) I heard it in the movie Cypher. [more inside]
posted by martinrebas at 3:25 AM PST - 13 comments

I'm struggling to find a way of saying "buddy" in Hungarian. [more inside]
posted by bunglin jones at 2:23 AM PST - 6 comments

What's the best way to sell my stuff? I am a college student with a very small bank account. I'm home on break, and see all this crap sitting around in my old room. Help me turn it into money. [more inside]
posted by kyleg at 12:48 AM PST - 13 comments

Can you name a reasonable price for a late wedding ring? Family Drama Inside! Come Look! --> [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:18 PM PST - 39 comments

After a several-month breakup, I'm trying to get back together with my long-term girlfriend. During the break, another girl who I've known for some time became one of my closest friends and we saw each other nearly every day. We ended up kissing once and once she slept over (but nothing else). I have no desire for Other Girl, but somewhat problematically have twice called Long-Term Girlfriend by her name. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:17 PM PST - 21 comments

I've heard that if you're a Verizon Wireless customer, the reps are allowed to give you a new phone four months before your contract is actually supposed to renew - sort of a secret rule. Is this true?
posted by gottabefunky at 8:14 PM PST - 8 comments

Relocating non-load-bearing walls in an apartment: broad cost range and any other suggestions? [more inside]
posted by MattD at 7:25 PM PST - 6 comments

Mastering audio for broadcast television. [more inside]
posted by erebora at 7:19 PM PST - 5 comments

My company engages in immoral, and borderline illegal behavior; how can I do something about it and still keep my job? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 7:14 PM PST - 46 comments

VidCapFilter:Help me get my VHS tapes onto my Powerbook! [more inside]
posted by GilloD at 6:46 PM PST - 5 comments

Where can I get high-res color visible satellite images showing the approach of "night" (sample low-res link inside)? [more inside]
posted by idontlikewords at 6:12 PM PST - 13 comments

Should I tell my doctor something about my medical history that might keep her from prescribing me the birth control I want? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:41 PM PST - 36 comments

What to do about Holiday Depression-related Decision. I have a pair of tickets for me and my partner to travel to my parents' home and then on to a tropical place. My partner is in a very low point and no longer wants to go because everything seems overwhelming. Do I go alone (which would be sad and possibly leave my partner at risk of deeper depression)? Do I cancel for both? Do I cut the first part of the trip off and try to explain to my family (who knows about depression but doesn't "get" it)? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:40 PM PST - 11 comments

Legal consequences of bigamy? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:40 PM PST - 8 comments

What is the best way for individuals in the US to have a well built in a particular village in Ghana that lacks potable water? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:40 PM PST - 6 comments

Should I Drink? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:39 PM PST - 65 comments

How much potable-ish water is water is extremely deep underground? [more inside]
posted by Kickstart70 at 3:59 PM PST - 7 comments

My iPod needs a little help! [more inside]
posted by northernsoul at 3:45 PM PST - 5 comments

I'm in Toronto and would like to donate my old PC to a worthy cause. Suggestions? [more inside]
posted by phoenixc at 3:38 PM PST - 6 comments

How do you use a Macintosh Clarisworks DAT file in a windows version of illustrator? [more inside]
posted by Sallysings at 3:06 PM PST - 7 comments

For the glasses-wearers out there, who makes good prescription sunglasses geared toward road cycling? [more inside]
posted by fijiwriter at 3:02 PM PST - 5 comments

Did we really not know pi to more than 740 decimal places before 1947? [more inside]
posted by obiwanwasabi at 2:54 PM PST - 19 comments

Give me cheese recommendations! I tasted a delicious soft tangy cheese at a party a few weeks ago and have been trying to find similar types. [more inside]
posted by hindmost at 2:24 PM PST - 24 comments

Is there are word (like homonym and homophone) for words that are spelt with the same numbers on a telephone keypads? If not, any ideas? [more inside]
posted by caek at 2:22 PM PST - 16 comments

CalgonFilter: Ancient Chinese secret or ticket to "away" . . . or both? [more inside]
posted by Fezboy! at 2:22 PM PST - 7 comments

I need help selling my car. [more inside]
posted by ButWhatDoIKnow at 1:18 PM PST - 11 comments

What is the origin of the term "Hip Hop"?
posted by Edible Energy at 12:58 PM PST - 12 comments

How much picture quality is lost in routing cable through three devices (satellite, VCR, DVD recorder? Also, how can I set up an entertainment system so it's as easy to switch from device to device as possible? [more inside]
posted by bargex at 12:56 PM PST - 7 comments

My VoIP is horrible today - calls dropping constantly. This is not new, but it's at an all-time high and is impossible to use the line for business. How do I know if it's the VoIP provider, or is this my broadband service (it's cable modem)? Who do I call and complain to?
posted by micawber at 12:41 PM PST - 7 comments

Internet Scam Filter: A good friend of mine has recently been hawking on about an internet site: 12dailypro.com. It sounds way too good to be true, and I'm thinking scam, or worse, illegal. Yet the guy has actually pulled out $800 in 2 weeks. Thoughts, fellow me-fites? [more inside]
posted by Mave_80 at 12:34 PM PST - 21 comments

I'd like to get a pair dressy looking winter boots in Toronto. [more inside]
posted by chunking express at 12:29 PM PST - 11 comments

Audio Cables 101: tell me exactly how to feed a stereo mix from my mixer to my breakout box. [more inside]
posted by cortex at 12:27 PM PST - 11 comments

My computer is driving me crazy... and others around me I'd imagine. I work in a cubefarm... [more inside]
posted by Mark5four0 at 12:21 PM PST - 5 comments

Firefox can't establish a connection to the server at www.amazon.com. [more inside]
posted by apetpsychic at 12:11 PM PST - 3 comments

Anyone out there ever forked over money to join a freelance writing marketplace website, like the one at MediaBistro, or Freelance Work Exchange? What's it like in there: are reputable folks hiring? Is it drawing away employers from free sites like Craigslist, or vice-versa? And was it worth it?
posted by johngoren at 11:54 AM PST - 5 comments

I had ViaVoice 98, but with a new computer, I'm wondering what the latest, greatest voice recognition program is. It'll mainly be for dictation. What are you using?
posted by gnz2001 at 11:51 AM PST - 4 comments

Calling all webmasters that display Google ads -- how much do you, in your own experience, make from them? And to put it in context, how busy is your site and what is the essence of it, primarily? (blog, forum, fun DB, static page, etc) I have thought about slipping ads into my websites, but I'm not sure it's worth it just to earn 47 cents.
posted by rolypolyman at 11:39 AM PST - 17 comments

My friend Mary was an alcoholic. She told me that she hasn't taken a sip of alcohol for a year. On December 9th, she had her liver enzymes tested. The GGT enzyme was out of range. [more inside]
posted by skjønn at 11:25 AM PST - 21 comments

MyGoogleFuIsWeak: Is there a way to completely strip a MS Word document of all tracking/revisions/undo/&c? [more inside]
posted by PurplePorpoise at 11:15 AM PST - 4 comments

I have a Sony PCG-GRX700 laptop. When I type an email, suddenly the cursor jumps to the top of the page and deletes all that I have written. Can I turn off the touch pad to just use a mouse?
posted by DOM1 at 11:14 AM PST - 11 comments

Is there a place in southern NH/NE Massachusetts that serves fried pickles? I followed the suggestion of a member of this board (you know who you are) and tried the deep fried pickles in Chattanooga Tennessee. I am hooked and am looking for a source closer to home. help me out here.
posted by Raybun at 11:09 AM PST - 10 comments

How can I make Excel sort rows the way I want it to? [more inside]
posted by Cosine at 11:06 AM PST - 4 comments

What dialect of Lisp should I learn? [more inside]
posted by profwhat at 11:05 AM PST - 14 comments

Who's responsible when a bank cashes a check that has been stolen and "washed"? [more inside]
posted by elquien at 11:04 AM PST - 14 comments

My LAN won't unconnect from a wireless IP address! [more inside]
posted by footnote at 11:00 AM PST - 10 comments

Where can I view a massive display of Christmas light pageantry in L.A.? [more inside]
posted by FearTormento at 10:43 AM PST - 12 comments

Some years back, I recall hearing an interview with someone regarding the relative value of the awards given out to survivors in wrongful death suits. Might have been on "This American Life." Help me find it... [more inside]
posted by googly at 10:38 AM PST - 7 comments

I need a picture of the (intact) Hayes-Healy Building from DePaul University in Chicago. [more inside]
posted by cusack at 10:38 AM PST - 4 comments

Turkeyfilter. How long can a fresh turkey be kept refrigerated? We are planning to cook a fresh bird on Christmas day. I just phoned the store, and they said they received a shipment today that will be good for seven days. Can this be possible? [more inside]
posted by Otis at 10:37 AM PST - 13 comments

My wife and I are probably going to have a complicated 1040 this year. I've found plenty of places that list licenced accountants, but no clear idea how to judge one from another. Does anybody have personal reccomendations or ideas of what to look out for?
posted by Orb2069 at 10:34 AM PST - 2 comments

We're cleaning up my grandparents' apartment, and have found an old radio. It's a Grundig Majestic 4006. Should I sell it on eBay or give it to Goodwill? [more inside]
posted by RakDaddy at 10:22 AM PST - 8 comments

Can anyone recommend a high quality, reasonably priced, project studio microphone specifically for vocals? Are preamplification and compression as important as the microphone? [more inside]
posted by stagewhisper at 10:13 AM PST - 16 comments

I have an old pc. Celeron 600mhz processor, 376mb ram. The ram is maxed out (I believe) and the overhead of microsoft's anti-spyware combined with AVG antivrus, along with XP sp2, have slowed the machine to a crawl. Is there a way to speed things up that is compatible with quicken 2004 and will leave me protected from net nasties? I thank you, hive-mind. [more inside]
posted by craniac at 10:00 AM PST - 23 comments

Looking to start a tiny, tiny, tiny version of MeFi (not really). Just a blog or community website that allows for multiple posters... [more inside]
posted by provocateur at 9:48 AM PST - 20 comments

Are you an expert cake baker who can tell me why my cakes are exploding? [more inside]
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 9:40 AM PST - 25 comments

I'm looking for musical keyboard suggestions... [more inside]
posted by dial-tone at 9:36 AM PST - 2 comments

WebDevFilter: Why do some gifs GIFs *not* appear in Windows/IE, but do appear in Win/FireFox Mac/Safari and Mac/FireFox? Specific example inside. [more inside]
posted by Wild_Eep at 9:35 AM PST - 22 comments

A conversation w/ a friend has left me curious about adults and mnemonic devices. What mnemonics, perhaps learned or created as a student, do AskMefi-ites still 'consult'?
posted by boombot at 9:19 AM PST - 127 comments

I need a new computer - any suggestions for which to buy? I'm open to both Mac and PC and I'd appreciate any advice on the best computer to buy. I'm not broke, but would prefer not to spend an unnecessary amount of money. A little about what I'm looking for - I use computers all day, but am not particularly tech-savvy. I'd like a good, solid, reliable home computer that I can use for internet, word processing, pictures and some layout (flyers, newsletters etc). I'd really appreciate any advice on what is the best way to go, both for a mac and a pc.
posted by krudiger at 9:13 AM PST - 29 comments

So my wife and I are headed from Boston to Annapolis this Thursday for the holidays. We’ll be returning north on Tuesday. Since finding out that I am 36th on the preorder list at my EB for an Xbox 360 I reserved in August, I’d like to spend these travel days trying maximize my chances at locating a system in a store so I would have it for the week off I get at the end of December. [more inside]
posted by robocop is bleeding at 8:21 AM PST - 5 comments

MeFiNewYork, I ask you this. Today, I need to make it from Union, NJ to JFK Airport via public transit. I need to be at JFK by 7pm. I am leaving Union at 1:38pm, taking NJT to Penn Station, and LIRR to the Jamaica-JFK Airtrain. I am doing this with 100 pounds of luggage in a large rolling suitcase about the size of another person. There is a strike going on. Am I doomed? [more inside]
posted by brownpau at 8:21 AM PST - 10 comments

Why does so much good music come from Sweden and Belgium, and so little from Holland?
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 8:00 AM PST - 40 comments

I'd like to get a small gift for the lady that cuts my hair -- ideally, something to share with her other five employees (all female). They are all very sweet ladies, and take good care of me, so I'd like to get something for her/them just to say thanks and show some holiday cheer. Ideas?
posted by davidmsc at 7:34 AM PST - 7 comments

I'm looking for websites with lots of adverts, or sites that have the most egregious use of online advertising. [more inside]
posted by gsb at 7:05 AM PST - 15 comments

How do I get my external hard drive to talk to my computer again? They seem to be pissed off about something, and now they won't even recognize the other's existence. [more inside]
posted by mudhouse at 7:04 AM PST - 12 comments

I fell and hurt my arm. Now it hurts to lift things, how do I know if this pain is from the normal bruising or from a cracked bone? [more inside]
posted by schwa at 6:51 AM PST - 14 comments

We have a new "conference room" for our department that is a little too much like an interrogation room. We'd like to make it better, and I'm looking for ideas. [more inside]
posted by Medieval Maven at 6:49 AM PST - 6 comments

Will a pet fish survive in my office over the weekend? [more inside]
posted by sandra194 at 6:38 AM PST - 17 comments

I was recently was watching an episode of the Simpsons, which had me reflecting on the fact that the show is quoted all the time by everyone, to some people's great annoyance. My question is, was there ever a show before it that was so widely quoted? [more inside]
posted by Sangermaine at 6:29 AM PST - 25 comments

What does it mean when they give an estimate of a financial loss to a city? Bloomberg has given an estimate that the strike will cost the city $400 million a day. But . . . [more inside]
posted by kingfisher, his musclebound cat at 5:43 AM PST - 8 comments

I've just moved into a new apartment and plugged in my entertainment center. My television, a 32 inch CRT Samsung which has always before had an excellent picture, now has these bars moving slowly upwards over the picture. [more inside]
posted by shanevsevil at 1:27 AM PST - 12 comments

What can I do with a cold press coffee maker? [more inside]
posted by RavinDave at 12:17 AM PST - 7 comments

My girlfriend and I have just moved to Davis, California from London, England, and we have both noticed that we drink lots more water than ever before....Why? It's winter here so it's not the heat. [more inside]
posted by xoe26 at 11:29 PM PST - 24 comments

DatingFilter: Is it acceptable to end a first-date midway through if I've realized within the first half hour that I won't be going on a second date with her? [more inside]
posted by Alex Handcoding at 11:21 PM PST - 35 comments

Where can I find black (on both sides) business cards? Online if possible... [more inside]
posted by crabintheocean at 10:29 PM PST - 15 comments

And on the subject of USB, I just bought parents a webcam for Christmas - the idea being that I buy one too and then we can see each other during our weekly chat. The problem I've just realized is that my Thinkpad (X22) isn't USB 2.0, so is that going to make the broadcast from my end unbearably slow? [more inside]
posted by russmail at 10:17 PM PST - 8 comments

I want to donate about few dozen clothings (shirts, pants, suites, sweaters, maybe some lamps) [more inside]
posted by curiousleo at 10:12 PM PST - 10 comments

What's the deal with USB cables? They're supposed to be "universal", but every time I get a new device (or buy a new cable at the store), I end up with a different kind of plug or receptacle. The only cable I can use with my digital camera is the one that came with it -- I've never found another with the same tiny plug on one end. Now my MP3 player requires yet another type of tiny plug. I left the cable that came with it at work, thinking I could surely use one of the various USB cable types I had at home. None of them fit! [more inside]
posted by Artifice_Eternity at 9:34 PM PST - 29 comments

Why is American English so different from British English? [more inside]
posted by gregb1007 at 9:29 PM PST - 29 comments

My car was broken into two months ago, and I still haven't replaced the stereo. I want to take care of that soon, but it also looks like I might be getting a whole 'nother car in the near future. So, what kind of stereo should I get knowing I might be selling the car in a couple of months? [more inside]
posted by jetskiaccidents at 9:17 PM PST - 7 comments

Where can I find nice Turkish Delight? [more inside]
posted by stray at 8:44 PM PST - 16 comments

Is there any basis to astrology? [more inside]
posted by kcm at 8:28 PM PST - 52 comments

Is there still segregation in the South (of the U.S.)? Are there still white only establishments that still exist?
posted by pelican at 8:25 PM PST - 36 comments

I have a tickle at the back of my throat, way up high... just where it triggers my gag reflex. It's like I've half-swallowed a hair and it's been bothering me all day. I've tried the usual methods of getting rid of it - drinking lots of water, coughing and clearing my throat (i.e. trying to "hock" it up) and IT'S STILL THERE. Does anyone have any other home remedies for me to try before I give in to my urge to purge? [more inside]
posted by web-goddess at 8:03 PM PST - 16 comments

Cheer-up-a-friend-fliter: My friend was just let go from her job because hiring someone new would be cheaper on her employer's budget. [more inside]
posted by echolex at 8:02 PM PST - 16 comments

Epigraph Filter: Writing an essay on the reasons for the Iraq invasion, thesis is that Bush and Co. had an aggressively nationalistic / Hobbesian worldview which combined with Democratic Imperialists (Wolfowitz et. al) found conviction post-9/11. Can you think of a relevant quote or poetry excerpt to stick in the beginning? [more inside]
posted by Firas at 7:59 PM PST - 12 comments

How do I come to terms with living in a city I'm not crazy about? [more inside]
posted by pdb at 7:52 PM PST - 22 comments

I'm afraid I bought the wrong Bill Hicks album. [more inside]
posted by ColdChef at 7:34 PM PST - 18 comments

Help! I (well, my boyfriend, actually) just burned a CD a lost all his files! [more inside]
posted by lalalana at 7:24 PM PST - 13 comments

Looking for albums by female singers with breathy voices who sing in a sort of contemporary C&W style, eg with twangy guitars and violins. Something like Shawn Colvin? [more inside]
posted by A189Nut at 6:45 PM PST - 36 comments

Can anyone recommend a good massaging back cushion? [more inside]
posted by jheiz at 6:33 PM PST - 5 comments

Identify-a-novel-filter. My girlfriend remembers reading a novel about ten years ago recounting the experiences of a Jewish family before, during and after World War 2. [more inside]
posted by gentle at 6:30 PM PST - 8 comments

2ndWebHostFilterofthedayFilter: Some time ago, my friend gave me access to his FTP server, a luxury which I have enjoyed until now, when the server has become increasingly unreliable...so I pose the following question: [more inside]
posted by weaponsgradecarp at 5:53 PM PST - 15 comments

Keeping frozen stuff frozen, while moving halfway across the country. [more inside]
posted by padraigin at 5:44 PM PST - 18 comments

What can you tell me about sheng hun kung fu? I'd also appreciate some info on the role of dragons in Chinese history (e.g. are Chinese dragons generally considered benevolent?)
posted by iced_borsch at 5:30 PM PST - 5 comments

Calling all railroad geeks! Does anyone know where I can buy a print/poster of this Southern Pacific artwork? I've fallen in love with it for numerous reasons that none of you care about. [more inside]
posted by keswick at 5:20 PM PST - 10 comments

phpHelpFilter: Is CoffeeFool.com based on an existing shopping cart system? [more inside]
posted by evil holiday magic at 4:03 PM PST - 14 comments

Folks, what on earth is wrong with my dvd/cd drive? If you can fix this i'll shower you with free drink if you ever come to Ireland. [more inside]
posted by kev23f at 4:02 PM PST - 7 comments

It's time for end of year charitable donations. Anyone have any suggestions for deserving candidates? Places where one's money can really make a difference?
posted by jgballard at 2:39 PM PST - 23 comments

What tricks separate a Photoshop/Illustrator newbie from a master? [more inside]
posted by gregchttm at 2:08 PM PST - 35 comments

ITunes Filter: Is there a utility that will take track numbers or information in a file name and put it into the ID3 tag? [more inside]
posted by Infernarl at 1:08 PM PST - 13 comments

Is Al-Anon related to Scientology in any way? [more inside]
posted by splatta at 12:27 PM PST - 18 comments

Where's a good place to get cheap Unix or windows hosting, meaning a server that I have root/Administrator access too? I don't need much bandwidth, but most of the deals out there that give you admin rights are high bandwidth and high cost. [more inside]
posted by delmoi at 12:24 PM PST - 44 comments

What's the best way to sell back (used) college textbooks? [more inside]
posted by chefscotticus at 12:23 PM PST - 12 comments

The boss "heard somewhere" that we don't have to pay for domain name registry, since they've had the domain for years. Anyone ever heard of such a thing? [more inside]
posted by penciltopper at 12:16 PM PST - 30 comments

What are the effective non-religious charities that help homeless people in San Francisco? [more inside]
posted by Nelson at 11:30 AM PST - 9 comments

SOX Compliance Statistics? [more inside]
posted by apark at 11:29 AM PST - 6 comments

Google syntax query. So: I want to be able to find all the links to Site X, while filtering out all internal links from within Site X. I'm using [link:sitex.org -site:sitex.org] as my query and get about 3 results. However I know there are thousands of links out there. Others seem to have had the same problem. Any ideas? Thanks in advance!
posted by carter at 11:28 AM PST - 9 comments

Hints on how to discard enormous pieces of styrofoam? [more inside]
posted by young_simba at 11:24 AM PST - 20 comments

Help me find (or failing that, make) my ideal screensaver. I'm running OS X, and Apple's built-in image folder Slide Show is too slow for my tastes, but there doesn't seem to be any way to adjust the speed... [more inside]
posted by wanderingmind at 11:22 AM PST - 4 comments

My fiancee lost a (sentimentally) valuable bracelet in Manhattan on Saturday night. What could I do to help locate it? It's silver with interlocking hearts -- one larger gold heart. It may have been lost on the N train or the 6 train uptown or downtown or in the area between 63rd and York and 59th and Lex. I'll do anything to get -that- bracelet back.. any ideas?
posted by seinfeld at 11:02 AM PST - 13 comments

Can anyone identify this melody? (350 kB .WAV, whistled here) [more inside]
posted by ZenMasterThis at 10:52 AM PST - 18 comments

Excel Wizards (or Apprentices, Probably) Grading is upon me again and there's something I've always wanted to do in Excel automatically -- from a range of values, drop the lowest N values and average the rest. [more inside]
posted by ontic at 10:44 AM PST - 7 comments

I have been charged 210$ for using a metro pass in Montreal that I am not supposed to be able to use. What's the best way to not have to pay this amount? [more inside]
posted by Napierzaza at 10:24 AM PST - 13 comments

Which banks are the most secure? [more inside]
posted by scazza at 10:20 AM PST - 14 comments

Can anyone remember the last time it snowed in San Francisco? [more inside]
posted by nyterrant at 10:16 AM PST - 12 comments

My appetite disappears when I'm stressed out. [more inside]
posted by heatherann at 9:42 AM PST - 28 comments

Has anyone heard any tales about someone doing a conference or seminar, setting up their laptop, and having porn or something similarly embarrassing accidentally come up on the big screen? It's gotta have happened. I've tried searching Usenet but it's a tough cookie to do keywords for.
posted by zek at 9:39 AM PST - 25 comments

I'm trying to get a new phpBB forum going, and I can't figure out how to begin getting word out. I have a few questions. [more inside]
posted by chef_boyardee at 8:54 AM PST - 8 comments

I really love this product (it is cool, isn't it?) - but as a Canadian, it seems just out of my grasp as they won't ship it to me. This site also has it, but again, discriminates against Canadians. Does anyone know anywhere else I can get it, either online or in person (I'm in Toronto) or something similar? [more inside]
posted by loquax at 8:27 AM PST - 11 comments

What would the world be like if there never was slavery? [more inside]
posted by eas98 at 8:24 AM PST - 39 comments

Where would one find a decent set of bookends in Chicago? [more inside]
posted by still at 8:21 AM PST - 8 comments

Is there a good online resource for the complete list of music that appears in a given film but may or may not be included in the released soundtrack?
posted by linklog at 8:14 AM PST - 6 comments

Should I take the fancy gift basket that is addressed to my office? [more inside]
posted by SassHat at 8:14 AM PST - 20 comments

Do large construction companies have to pay (the city, I guess) when they block off a lane of a city street with jersey barriers during construction? I'm sure this varies by locale, but is it a nominal fee or something that more substantially compensates the locality for inconvenience?
posted by OmieWise at 7:58 AM PST - 6 comments

What should I do the the garden gnome I just liberated? [more inside]
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 7:46 AM PST - 34 comments

I'm having some problems with my AV receiver and I'm hoping someone here can help. I'll post the details inside. [more inside]
posted by bDiddy at 7:41 AM PST - 15 comments

How much lower is the air pressure on the 23rd floor of a standard apartment building than at ground level? [more inside]
posted by onshi at 7:38 AM PST - 21 comments

I was brought up in a non-religious family with a vague Protestant background. I'm currently considering converting to Judaism (not because of a relationship with someone who's Jewish, simply for my own reasons.) I know next to nothing about the organised aspects of the religion - I've never even set foot in a synagogue - but I'm interested in learning more. I'm not really ready to approach a rabbi yet to discuss things, I think I need to explore the whole religion a bit more before I consider starting on any possible path that might later lead to conversion. Where should I start?
posted by different at 7:33 AM PST - 37 comments

Broken Keyboard Filter: So my GF managed to splash a bit of water from on the corner of the keyboard of her Dell Inspiron 600m. At first it appeared fine, but now a day later the Ctrl key appears to be stuck. [more inside]
posted by Heminator at 7:22 AM PST - 9 comments

Foreign tchotchke filter: Bangkok Bank gives banking customers a nice illustrated calendar each year as a gift. A friend received the 2005 calendar as a gift/souvenir while visiting Bangkok last year and would like to obtain a copy for 2006. Unfortunately, not being in Bangkok and not being a Bangkok Bank customer has made this task rather challenging. [more inside]
posted by shoepal at 7:10 AM PST - 15 comments

I need help with the Microsoft Word mail merge feature. [more inside]
posted by Amizu at 6:07 AM PST - 11 comments

I have known Ben for about a year. We went on dates a few times at the beginning of our acquaintance, but nothing happened. A while later, we declared our desire for each other and ended up in bed. He has been in an open relationship with Sarah for the last 9 months, and in that time he and I have become close friends and also slept together three times. I have really fallen for him - should I declare my desire for a relationship with him? [More details...] [more inside]
posted by pollystark at 3:37 AM PST - 38 comments

Problems with a PS2 and stuttering video playback in games... [more inside]
posted by tomble at 3:27 AM PST - 5 comments

How low in calories can a diet get and still be considered healthy? [more inside]
posted by twine42 at 2:58 AM PST - 29 comments

DVD Solutions for persons with limited dexterity? [more inside]
posted by chudmonkey at 2:19 AM PST - 15 comments

My wife (who was raised Buddhist) wants to go to a church on Christmas day. As it happens, we'll be in Portland, Oregon on that day. Having been raised Jewish myself, and being away from my home city, I haven't a clue as where to go. [more inside]
posted by Etaoin Shrdlu at 10:18 PM PST - 22 comments

I haven't received payment from my supposedly biweekly paying job for nearly two months. This lack of payment has resulted in financial difficulties for me. How do I force payment? Do I have any recourse for the financial difficulties that have resulted due to their negligence? [more inside]
posted by honeyx at 10:17 PM PST - 22 comments

Who created the artwork shown alongside Claire's in the season 4 finale of Six Feet Under? [more inside]
posted by davebush at 9:40 PM PST - 4 comments

How do audiobooks work on a 3rd gen iPod and where can I find them for free?
posted by a007r at 9:12 PM PST - 15 comments

I'm an attorney from D.C. moving to San Fran to join my boyfriend. In every interview, the first question is "why did you move?" For several reasons, I don't like referring to "my boyfriend" in interviews. What can I do? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by bananafish at 9:00 PM PST - 53 comments

Is listening to an audio-book less intellectually stimulating than reading the same book, especially in terms of literacy and increasing vocabulary?
posted by nthdegx at 8:47 PM PST - 19 comments

Arc-welding or Oxy-Fuel welding? [more inside]
posted by drezdn at 7:47 PM PST - 9 comments

OSCommerceFilter: I need to find a new ecommerce site package for a small business client. OSCommerce has been fun, and that whole open source terrain is a real kick, but security problems have become serious, and it's time to consider something else. [more inside]
posted by ValveAnnex at 7:28 PM PST - 8 comments

I'm having trouble recovering my data from my external HDD after I used Carbon Cloner for Mac 10.4.3. [more inside]
posted by SeizeTheDay at 7:08 PM PST - 7 comments

arrrrh. This is probably a stupid question. Flash 7.0.61 plug-in, Firefox 1.0.7, and Linux 2.6.14 : Flash was working. Then it stopped working. [more inside]
posted by Grod at 6:26 PM PST - 6 comments

This song is about a letter found in the glove compartment of a used car (maybe a chevrolet) The letter says something to the effect that "If you read this, I have died." Want to get this song as a Christmas present for my dad.
posted by Penguin at 5:50 PM PST - 12 comments

Are the terms ontology, taxonomy, and folksonomy interchangeable? [more inside]
posted by nramsey at 5:39 PM PST - 20 comments

Any recommendations on software alternatives that are more resources friendly than their mainstream competitors? Examples: Firefox vs. IE, Winamp vs. ITunes, alternate anti-virus programs, etc.
posted by sian at 5:02 PM PST - 18 comments

Are there any Bluetooth keyboards with on-keyboard status lights like caps lock, num lock, and scroll lock? [more inside]
posted by adamwolf at 4:30 PM PST - 10 comments

How can I get an External Hard Drive to show up in WinXP SP2 again? [more inside]
posted by mdbell79 at 3:26 PM PST - 4 comments

Political Memory Hole Filter: Can you help me find the quote? Before the Invasion, some neocon (?Wolfowitz?) was quoted in a major paper complaining how the CIA was always wrong because they were too conservative in their estimates... My google-fu has failed me. Anyone have the link or the quote?
posted by INFOHAZARD at 2:35 PM PST - 2 comments

Last night I stumbled across a demo version/early live recording of Karma Police (Radiohead song). Like it. Any suggestions for other early versions of songs, interesting collaborations, good live recordings, or hard to find songs by good artists? I want to go on a musical treasure hunt. [more inside]
posted by Derive the Hamiltonian of... at 2:32 PM PST - 37 comments

Help us get our 20 month old to sleep on his own again. [more inside]
posted by gfrobe at 2:21 PM PST - 16 comments

Know any good tutorials or resources on visual effects? My company is having an animated logo contest, the winner would become the 'stinger' for our reel. I'm not sure I'll win, but I would like to have an interesting submission. I just don't have a decent idea for the logo, nor do I know much about motion graphics. I know photoshop and 3dsmax (which is what we use at work), so maybe the resouces could reflect that?
posted by hoborg at 1:47 PM PST - 4 comments

Is there a relationship between visual acuity (ie. the 20/20 or 20/xx scale) and retinoscopy results (the -6.50 +1.00 that is the prescription for your glasses/contact lenses)?
posted by ajpresto at 1:30 PM PST - 9 comments

I had a brief power outage last night; today some of the computer programs are not reading a CD in the DVD drive correctly, while others still read it without a problem. What's going on? [more inside]
posted by Tuwa at 1:05 PM PST - 6 comments

If my iBook's battery were to be dead, as opposed to my iBook clearly being defective, how might it behave? [more inside]
posted by mph at 1:00 PM PST - 16 comments

Help me find a DVD recorder that doesn't suck. [more inside]
posted by BorgLove at 12:00 PM PST - 6 comments

Was ist zimtstern? [more inside]
posted by 40 Watt at 11:43 AM PST - 11 comments

Stupid Pizza Question: I sometimes attempt to blot the grease on the top of pizza. How come sometimes this works just fine, but other times I end up pulling half the cheese off the pizza? [more inside]
posted by piratebowling at 11:08 AM PST - 25 comments

UK social services: Unmarried twenty year old with an unplanned pregnancy, baby due in a few months... [more inside]
posted by StickyCarpet at 10:56 AM PST - 21 comments

PhysicsFilter: Is there any reason why a giant radiometer couldn't be used as a way to generate electricity?
posted by spilon at 10:10 AM PST - 12 comments

I would like to make 'experimental' animated shorts using some of my own abstract drawings (scanned) and various other image-sources (miniDV, pictures, etc). I do not seek to animate cartoon characters (although that could happen on rare occasions). What animation software would be best for me? [more inside]
posted by amusem at 9:38 AM PST - 9 comments

My 92 year old father has written a book about his life and he wants to appear on Oprah and similar shows to promote the book. Does anyone know anyone who can help gets this to a national market? [more inside]
posted by Helen J. at 9:06 AM PST - 21 comments

Is there a good (and reasonably priced) Indian restaurant in Soho? [more inside]
posted by essexjan at 9:05 AM PST - 24 comments

I need a strategy and workplan to get funds to rebuild a hiking trail destroyed by a major dam failure. [more inside]
posted by F Mackenzie at 9:01 AM PST - 10 comments

Where can I get a FemCap or similar sort of cervical cap product online in the UK? [more inside]
posted by By The Grace of God at 9:00 AM PST - 5 comments

Help me not miss the coolest parts of St. Petersburg. (Russia, not Florida.) [more inside]
posted by joshjs at 8:23 AM PST - 14 comments

Referencing dvd commentaries using the Harvard Bibliographic system. I've looked around online and although many pages tackle similar items I haven't been able to find anything satisfactory.
posted by feelinglistless at 5:27 AM PST - 1 comments

Does it bother you to click on Yahoo! links and unexpectedly see your Yahoo! name on the screen because you prefer to store your Yahoo (enough with the exclamation point already) password in a cookie? [more inside]
posted by mono blanco at 3:51 AM PST - 19 comments

Should I lie to my three year old daughter about Santa Claus? [more inside]
posted by crazyray at 11:16 PM PST - 162 comments

Tiger 10.4.3 - Can I lower the menu bar? [more inside]
posted by shino-boy at 10:19 PM PST - 11 comments

What causes long-term relationships to end? [more inside]
posted by teem at 10:17 PM PST - 42 comments

What happens if I eat all my Celexa (citalopram) at once? [more inside]
posted by five fresh fish at 10:07 PM PST - 22 comments

What's worse, manners wise? (Elevator behavior / Train behavior) [more inside]
posted by prettyboyfloyd at 10:05 PM PST - 54 comments

Calling all hip hop heads: Please help me find the name of a soul song used as a fade-out on a Little Brother track. [more inside]
posted by anthill at 10:03 PM PST - 6 comments

I've just aquired a Microsoft Sidewinder Precision Pro for $1.50 US at a thrift store. It works and Windows grabbed the right drivers for it. 1) What good games are there that take advantage of the "3D" controls? 2) How do I make it work in Descent 3? I can only get the POV hat and various buttons to work - the joystick/twist portion does nothing. I'm probably being clueless as to how to configure it in Descent 3.
posted by loquacious at 9:56 PM PST - 8 comments

Did you ever reach a crossroads in your life when you had to choose which variation of your name to use professionally? For example, for somebody named Joseph Quailsford Smith: Joseph Q. Smith, or Joe Smith, or Joseph Smith, or J. Q. Smith, or J. Quailsford Smith, or Joseph Quailsford Smith, or Quailsford Smith? [more inside]
posted by qslack at 9:44 PM PST - 33 comments

I just discovered that GarageBand is on my new PowerBook. Is it possible to use the keyboard keys as keys gor GB's musical keyboard? I couldn't find an answer to this quest on the Web or on Apple's site.
posted by ParisParamus at 8:56 PM PST - 18 comments

What is the deal with the Jews and Jesus? If Jesus was a jew, why are the Jewish not Christians, and seem so touchy about that issue? Christmas vs. Hanuka. Jesus on the cross, etc. Don't they acknowledge him the way Christians do? Or am I wrong? Always seems to invoke an eye rolling when I see Jesus mentioned to a Jewish person on TV...why? [more inside]
posted by SparkyPine at 7:24 PM PST - 105 comments

I am nine weeks pregnant. As a result, I now have a frightenly acute sense of smell which is wreaking havoc with my life - a bad scent will trigger nausea and even vomiting. Walking down a city street has become excruciating as I am very sensitive to the smells of cigarette smoke and perfume in particular. Suggestions?
posted by echolalia67 at 5:20 PM PST - 27 comments

I fell on slipper stairs and hurt my back. ouch! [more inside]
posted by freudianslipper at 5:18 PM PST - 13 comments

Where can I buy a reasonably fresh Christmas tree on December 28? [more inside]
posted by PadrePuffin at 5:17 PM PST - 8 comments

What are some of the most important books about Japan's role in World War II? Read on... [more inside]
posted by Ekim Neems at 2:31 PM PST - 14 comments

Next spring I will be starting grad school and be carrying a laptop with me to class. The school is in a downtown building of a not so safe town and most the classes are at night. Is there any insurance that would cover it being stolen from my person (versus the car or home)? [more inside]
posted by TheLibrarian at 2:00 PM PST - 18 comments

Does Santa have a middle name?
posted by Botunda at 1:51 PM PST - 22 comments

what is the loudest possible way to play back a sound recording?
posted by enrico de giove at 12:53 PM PST - 23 comments

Help identify this literature/crime novel filter... [more inside]
posted by jasper411 at 12:34 PM PST - 6 comments

I am seeking some unbiased advice on personal loan consolidation. Search engines are too spammed by commercial outfits of dubious value to be of any help. But MeFi knows everything! [more inside]
posted by blindcarboncopy at 11:48 AM PST - 19 comments

I think Comcast installed spyware on my Mac. Boing Boing now redirects to ebay, through a series of URLs. Please help me debug and fix it! [more inside]
posted by rajbot at 11:04 AM PST - 18 comments

How can I convince my parents to move to a retirement community? [more inside]
posted by jamie939 at 10:54 AM PST - 17 comments

How would the Ultimate Nonconformist behave, dress, eat, and live? [more inside]
posted by crapples at 10:32 AM PST - 42 comments

I have an idea for an invention. The only part of it I have is "concept". How do I bring it fruition? [more inside]
posted by erd0c at 10:16 AM PST - 14 comments

I have a website that is hosted by DreamHost but the domain registration is at GoDaddy. I want to transfer the registration somewhere else because of GoDaddy's politics. One thing I'm looking for is private registration so that my info is not available to spammers on Whois -- GoDaddy and a few other companies do that. Anyone have any suggestions for good registration companies? Namecheap? 1&1? RegisterFly? Thanks.
posted by stacyhall1 at 9:57 AM PST - 20 comments

Is there any household item that will get foam sealant (the stuff in the can at the hardware store) off your fingers? I tried Lava and it didn't do anything, then I tried vegetable oil and it made it less sticky (except with the bond to my fingers).
posted by hodyoaten at 9:28 AM PST - 17 comments

Laptop repair filter: I dropped my laptop (HP Compaq nc8000, warranty expired) and now my DVD player doesn't work. As this is my first laptop I know nothing about laptop repair. [more inside]
posted by soiled cowboy at 9:27 AM PST - 8 comments

Who makes a kickass indoor hammock? Who sells a kickass indoor hammock (online or, preferably, in Toronto)? What makes an indoor hammock kickass? What should I look for and what should I avoid? Thanks!
posted by dobbs at 7:49 AM PST - 11 comments

I'm starting a new blog on a wide-ranging and ever-shifting set of topics, and I want to let my readers choose which of those topics to follow via RSS. I could offer tons of separate feeds, but many of these would be ephemeral, so I'd want to make it really easy to unsubscribe. Ideally, each user would get a single custom feed, the content of which they could control from my site (see here and here). Is there any way of doing this? [more inside]
posted by jsbww at 7:26 AM PST - 10 comments

Is there a mathematical technique for simplifying ratios/fractions? [more inside]
posted by lunkfish at 3:35 AM PST - 21 comments

I'm having major problems with both Firefox (my browser of choice) and Opera 8. Firefox stalls consistently for a considerable amount of time (1 min - 5 mins) on specific sites (for instance del.icio.us/popular/) and Opera has a font-rendering bug on most sites (for instance, again, del.icio.us/popular/). [more inside]
posted by Frankieist at 2:28 AM PST - 15 comments

Carry case for Xbox 360 and accessories? [more inside]
posted by Chuckles at 1:13 AM PST - 4 comments

Does anybody else get the urge to bite something (like say, an arm) every once in a while? [more inside]
posted by lychee at 12:18 AM PST - 62 comments

H2OFilter: Laptop disaster! The cat spilled a vase-full of water on the keyboard of my Dell Latitude C800 laptop. I managed to avoid getting the thing completely drenched, but the machined did shut down immediately, unprompted. [more inside]
posted by yellowcandy at 10:31 PM PST - 14 comments

Does Thunderbird have trouble rendering html-email from YouSendIt? [more inside]
posted by GeneticFreek at 10:19 PM PST - 1 comments

Help me identify the location of this photo. So far I know it's in Finland, and it's an annual traditional event. It's a photo of 6 kids dressed as gnomes, taking part if a tug-of-war. [more inside]
posted by MiG at 9:01 PM PST - 12 comments

Thinking about building my own PC. Looking for smallest possible form factor barebones system with Socket 479 (Pentium M). [more inside]
posted by Kwantsar at 8:59 PM PST - 14 comments

Interracial Dating Filter. How do I introduce my mom to my boyfriend? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:55 PM PST - 22 comments

My boyfriend of three years has an eating disorder. It's getting worse, and I need help (advice, emotional support, AskMeFi words of wisdom). [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:55 PM PST - 43 comments

Should I or shouldn’t I? I’ve known this girl for about six years, and we have always been really good friends. Trouble is I like her and don’t know if I should tell her or not. And, as always there’s more to this… [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:53 PM PST - 22 comments

Help me connect my laptop wirelessly to a desktop with a hardwire connection and a pci wireless card. [more inside]
posted by genial at 8:48 PM PST - 2 comments

can a man be voluptuous? [more inside]
posted by brandz at 8:05 PM PST - 26 comments

Gifts For Geeks? Geeks of Metafilter: what gift would you want? [more inside]
posted by anastasiav at 6:43 PM PST - 26 comments

If a bunch of kids decided to have a snowball fight on my lawn, near my drive way and if one of them gets hurt. Can they blame me? It's my lawn, but surely it's not my snow. I shovel my drive way but I do not encourage kids to come and have fights.
posted by phyrewerx at 6:26 PM PST - 21 comments

I am looking for histories of the U.S. Senate in the 19th century. [more inside]
posted by Yelling At Nothing at 6:12 PM PST - 2 comments

Floridian Scuba-diving Mefites, help! There's one full week left before Christmas, and I want to get in some diving in Florida. I'd especially be interested in finishing up my Nitrox certification (I just need to do the checkout dives). Help me figure out how! [more inside]
posted by SemiSophos at 5:26 PM PST - 4 comments

Scratched Oakleys: My girlfriend just scratched her Oakley Haylons (Cork / VR28 Gold Iridium lenses), and is kicking herself. Can I help? (What are my lens repair/replacement options?)
posted by anonymoose at 2:56 PM PST - 6 comments

What is your favorite astronomy picture? Would you please provide a link to it? The higher the resolution, the better. [more inside]
posted by sciurus at 2:49 PM PST - 29 comments

I want a Heads-up Display for my car. [more inside]
posted by cellphone at 2:42 PM PST - 6 comments

I'm looking for a super-comfortable bathrobe for my wife. I'm in in Toronto, and I need to buy it locally (no time to order it). Little help? [more inside]
posted by ltdan at 2:32 PM PST - 8 comments

I want to make jewelry! Like, real jewelry. Read: metalsmithing, not putting manufactured beads on wires. What tools should I buy? What books would you recommend? Do I need to take a class or not? [more inside]
posted by fishfucker at 2:29 PM PST - 17 comments

Does anyone have any experiences with pregnancy and postpartum hormones having a negative effect on mathematical or logic skills? [more inside]
posted by Alison at 2:17 PM PST - 19 comments

How can I use JavaScript to get an anchor from the URL? [more inside]
posted by kirkaracha at 1:30 PM PST - 4 comments

A friend went to Norway and slept in a king-size bed with an interesting feature: the comforter was split down the middle so that each occupant had his or her own half. Where could I buy one of these comforters in the US? [more inside]
posted by Bezbozhnik at 1:15 PM PST - 20 comments

Is this my imagination? In going thru my blog list today it seems a bunch of them are missing their latest posts...as if someone came along and chopped the last one or two posts from each one. Assuming I have not dropped into a time warp that put me back two or three days, what's the deal?
posted by konolia at 1:10 PM PST - 13 comments

GiftFilter: What do I get my 76-year-old Father-in-Law for Christmas? (additional parameters inside) [more inside]
posted by mecran01 at 1:08 PM PST - 16 comments

Tell me more about medicinal mushrooms! [more inside]
posted by arimathea at 1:06 PM PST - 3 comments

What is the proper etiquette for dealing with my deceased Mom’s jewelry? [more inside]
posted by Tallguy at 12:57 PM PST - 33 comments

Can I increase the battery capacity of a 1st gen iPod mini? [more inside]
posted by skallas at 12:27 PM PST - 3 comments

RSI - a dear friend has bad repetitive injuries (carpal tunnel problems)...it gets bad when she types....and allieviates when she stops. Oh, yeah, she's a professoinal writer. No - not RSI advice....keyboard advice. Have you (or someone you know) had comfort (or a reduction of discomfort) from using a particular keyboard? [more inside]
posted by filmgeek at 12:24 PM PST - 36 comments

I'm interested in wearable computing and am curious if anyone has any resources for information. More importantly, I'm wanting to get a one handed keyboard. I've seen the Frogpad but would like to know all of my options. I'm preferablly looking for something bluetooth that can be used with my Blackberry. Thanks in advance.
posted by Knigel at 12:05 PM PST - 8 comments

New Mac UserFilter - Loading up a new iBook: What software and utilities should I put on it. [more inside]
posted by clarkie666 at 12:03 PM PST - 19 comments

Repair or replace the car stereo? [more inside]
posted by Vervain at 12:01 PM PST - 6 comments

Can a meat lover and a vegan ever be good for each other? [more inside]
posted by nakedsushi at 11:44 AM PST - 52 comments

Our Christmas tree has a drinking problem. [more inside]
posted by _sirmissalot_ at 11:44 AM PST - 16 comments

I'm ready to put away the Sea Breeze. Help me choose a grownup skin care regimen that works. [more inside]
posted by aebaxter at 11:42 AM PST - 33 comments

Any statistics wizards around? I have a algorithm I need to describe in the language of stats and all the books are full of words and symbols I don't understand. [more inside]
posted by Leonard at 11:19 AM PST - 23 comments

Automated file archiving for Windows? [more inside]
posted by KirTakat at 10:56 AM PST - 11 comments

Two-part question about money and spending per semester: first part for college students, second part for those in the post-collegiate working world. [more inside]
posted by limeonaire at 10:43 AM PST - 19 comments

How much would you spend on presents for someone you've been dating 3 months? [more inside]
posted by groar at 10:31 AM PST - 31 comments

PSP or Palm TX or even Pocket PC? I've been given the option of picking my own electronics gift for Xmas. Which one should I go for? I currently use a Sony Clie TG-50. [more inside]
posted by damiano99 at 10:08 AM PST - 11 comments

Why do some people take the time to back their car into a parking space? Is it vanity or utility?
posted by tfmm at 10:06 AM PST - 60 comments

Bad pianohabitfilter [more inside]
posted by Ogre Lawless at 9:43 AM PST - 10 comments

I'm looking for CMS options for an alumni community site I'm building - one that has the features we want and yet still user-friendly to relative beginners. I've got a few options (Xoops, PhpNuke, Drupal, CivicSpace) but I don't know what to choose. [more inside]
posted by divabat at 9:31 AM PST - 11 comments

Help me simplify my life. Need help with Palm .txt and Mac. I want to sync a text file (large) between the two. [more inside]
posted by TheFeatheredMullet at 9:26 AM PST - 7 comments

I remember taking a long sort of evaluation test in high school where it asked question regarding career interest. At the end, it would provide suggestions, though broad range, gave a good idea. I have not been able to find something like this online (I know, it seems strange) or usually are not very comprehensive. Any ideas?
posted by _zed_ at 9:17 AM PST - 17 comments

Power Inverters for cars - the thing you plug into your cigarette lighter, with a regular wall-plug on the other end. I bought one last night, for use with gadgets on a road trip. Thing is, they offer two types, excuse the B-st B-y links: this one (95W), which I bought, and a stronger one (150W) here - Question is, I went with the smaller cheaper one but I know nothing about power use for things. Should I return it for the larger, or is this sufficient power to charge a laptop, camera, PSP, ipod, etc? Mostly concerned with safety to equipment and car's electrical system. THANKS FOR YOUR ADVICE. [more inside]
posted by Peter H at 9:11 AM PST - 16 comments

Help me figure out how to manage large amounts of data on a laptop. Music, Tivo downloads, photos... I'm running out of room! [more inside]
posted by kdern at 9:07 AM PST - 10 comments

Help me get my domain back. My domain name expired. My spam filter ate the renewal messages so I never saw them. Simple as that. I'm scrambling to fix the problem but I'm having big problems reaching an actual human at namecheap.com (the domain registrar I used) to renew. To make things worse, I run a small ISP so this affects over 1000 people directly. What can I do? I have backup domains but that switch would be very painful for my customers.
posted by phildog at 7:50 AM PST - 20 comments

What should I do on New Year's Eve in NYC? [more inside]
posted by edlundart at 7:38 AM PST - 18 comments

Statistics problem: Suitable statistical test for data containing rankings of preference for men and women for 4 alternatives. (more inside) Help me extract some meaning from my data, please. [more inside]
posted by JeNeSaisQuoi at 7:33 AM PST - 13 comments

A friend has organised a huge tour for us taking in Ho Chi Minh, Phonm Penh, Siem Reap and Hanoi. Unfortunately, the travel agent now tells us that the flight between Siem Reap and Hanoi / Ho Chi Minh is overbooked, and we're on "standby" just after the New Year. Which presumably means we won't make it. How else can a party of 15 people get from Siem Reap to Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, in Vietnam, in the first week of January? Many thanks for your help!
posted by Dio at 7:17 AM PST - 7 comments

Computer Peripheral Filter: I am looking for a device (other than a plotter) which I can hook up to a computer which can then generate text that looks hand written. I know you can get handwriting TT fonts , but the documents produced do not really look hand written. Getting a plotter is a last resort. I'm pretty sure I have heard of a device that will do what I need, but I can't seem to google it. Any assistance will be greatly appreciated.
posted by wisdom-seeker at 6:56 AM PST - 9 comments

Outlook 2000 thinks I am offline, however I'm not. Is there any way I can make it see sense without rebooting the computer? [more inside]
posted by mr_silver at 6:46 AM PST - 7 comments

How do I fade the colour only on an area of a pair of jeans? [more inside]
posted by funambulist at 6:35 AM PST - 10 comments

I want to paint ceramic coffee mugs without going to one of those bake places (too expensive.) If I use acrylic paints and a gloss varnish, will they last a careful handwashing? (I'm not going to expect to make them dishwasher safe.) [more inside]
posted by saucy at 4:23 AM PST - 14 comments

What are your favorite books about submarines? [more inside]
posted by defreckled at 4:14 AM PST - 19 comments

Visa problem, could use some help [more inside]
posted by allen.spaulding at 2:03 AM PST - 8 comments

Has anybody had any success making good business out of an online business such as CafePress? [more inside]
posted by arrowhead at 1:20 AM PST - 14 comments

Need mp3/MIDI/any audio for an old Christian song by Jon Byron called "We Are the Family of God" [more inside]
posted by beammeup4 at 1:01 AM PST - 1 comments

What is the "indelible" purple dye used to mark Iraqi voters? [more inside]
posted by scodger at 12:29 AM PST - 11 comments

My CRT monitor has a scratch on it. Can it be fixed or made less noticeable? [more inside]
posted by donth at 11:42 PM PST - 4 comments

I need OS X drivers for a HP ScanJet 7400C. HP does not offer the OS X drivers for download, rather you must purchase them. I have checked DriverGuide. I have tried the VueScan demo and TWAIN SANE, but neither works with the scanner's document feeder. Does anyone happen to have the drivers?
posted by the biscuit man at 10:12 PM PST - 6 comments

Okay, I'm stumped. I have no idea what to get my girlfriend for Christmas. I got her some nice jewelry for her birthday in October, and I got her art last Christmas (shortly after we started dating). I'm not ready to be buying any rings, but don't want to trod down the same path giftwise.What do I do? Any ideas (she has an iPod) would be welcome!
posted by trox at 9:18 PM PST - 23 comments

A pregnancy question, regarding pregnancy testing and HCG... [more inside]
posted by sperare at 9:10 PM PST - 6 comments

Anyone use these "Yaktrax" thingys? More importantly, any experience using them on not-entirely-flat-soled-shoes? [more inside]
posted by desuetude at 8:41 PM PST - 11 comments

Flickr Zeitgeist for my non-flickr photo collection? [more inside]
posted by spifl at 8:36 PM PST - 2 comments

Help me find the best sushi in LA [more inside]
posted by drdanger at 7:57 PM PST - 25 comments

Pint-size paleontology: Where in WA state (Seattle area), is a good place for an 8-year-old to be able to look for and (probably) find fossils? (And take some home) [more inside]
posted by -harlequin- at 7:47 PM PST - 7 comments

Where can I find episodes of Takeshi's Castle? [more inside]
posted by WinnipegDragon at 7:38 PM PST - 4 comments

Does anyone have any experience with these these ultrasonic mouse repeller things? Do they actually repel the mice? [more inside]
posted by SoftRain at 7:03 PM PST - 29 comments

MedicFilter: I'm on Prednisone for 5 days for the second time of my life, and just like the first time, it's working as intended to clear up my severe congestion, but it's also making me king of the freaking world. Why is this? [more inside]
posted by thanotopsis at 6:34 PM PST - 38 comments

I'm looking for three or four real-life adventure stories that would entertain and enthrall a twelve year-old boy. [more inside]
posted by Dasein at 6:34 PM PST - 35 comments

Help me spend my travel budget! [more inside]
posted by unclejeffy at 5:54 PM PST - 4 comments

Some years ago I accidentally disabled the media drives (compact flash, memorystick) on the front of my HP Pavillion. I didn't worry so much at the time. But now I want to use it, and I can't make it come back. [more inside]
posted by evilcolonel at 5:46 PM PST - 9 comments

Where can I buy a cheap Santa Suit in San Francisco? [more inside]
posted by dty1 at 5:43 PM PST - 8 comments

I'm looking for the name of the funny, slickly-produced, xmas-themed videos that went around like a web meme. They featured a 70s pimpy-looking guy called "[firtstname] Christmas." It was one of the first net memes, probably around the time of "Mahir - I kiss you!" I don't know much else, except that he punched an old lady in the face in one episode. [more inside]
posted by scamper at 5:27 PM PST - 2 comments

Is it true that the original US Constitution is written on hemp paper? Cite? [more inside]
posted by furiousxgeorge at 5:11 PM PST - 15 comments

I'm looking for a simple web FTP interface to allow clients to upload files to my web server. I'm using Dreamhost, so it has to be installable on standard Apache / PHP / MySQL, etc. I'd like to have a simple "upload file" area in the client's section where they choose 1-3 files and click "upload."
posted by letitrain at 4:38 PM PST - 10 comments

Backing up ibook with webspace? [more inside]
posted by gtr at 4:37 PM PST - 6 comments

Telcos bill calls in varying minimum time increments (e.g. per second, per 6 seconds, per 30 seconds). Is there a formula to tell the difference this makes? Bonus points if it is on a web page or spreadsheet I can download. [more inside]
posted by bystander at 4:04 PM PST - 8 comments

Just got a USB Telbox to connect normal phone to Computer via USB, so i can use skype AND normal phone. Connected per instructions, configured firewall, system shows all hardware there but no ringtone, no work! OS XP pro, Zone Alarm Pro, DSL
posted by mayl at 3:48 PM PST - 6 comments

Do you recognize any of these people? [more inside]
posted by luriete at 3:41 PM PST - 32 comments

I'm looking for recommendations for inventory management software (Windows) for a small engineering company. [more inside]
posted by jacobsee at 2:59 PM PST - 13 comments

I am looking for a Mac equivalent to bartender by seagull software. Specifically I need a program that can print barcodes and read the data from an external data file.
posted by tirebouchon at 2:36 PM PST - 2 comments

What is the mechanical device used in Speedlaces called? [more inside]
posted by Caviar at 12:53 PM PST - 26 comments

BibleFilter: Why are there so many versions of the new testament? [more inside]
posted by necessitas at 12:38 PM PST - 52 comments

Hipster PDA question A few months back I saw a website that had a applet that let you drag and drop various pages into a templet and then print out on a normal sheet of paper a set of six pages that would fold book style. I've been searching all day and can't seem to find it, any idea where this website resides?
posted by JonnyRotten at 12:25 PM PST - 5 comments

What are some songs that prominently feature hand claps? [more inside]
posted by billysumday at 12:02 PM PST - 140 comments

How can I improve the performance of our showerboard dry erase boards? [more inside]
posted by medpt at 11:56 AM PST - 14 comments

I'm looking for a good collection of Russian Fairy Tales for my four year old. There are several available on UK Amazon. Can anyone recommend one book in preference to the others?
posted by sagwalla at 11:51 AM PST - 8 comments

2000 fonts, and I'm missing something really important! Last week I converted from Suitcase to FontBook, and somewhere, somehow in the process I toasted a system font and everything is now really, really bad... [more inside]
posted by mimi at 11:44 AM PST - 11 comments

What is the legal status of software developed with OSS tools? [more inside]
posted by mkultra at 11:36 AM PST - 11 comments

How can I redirect images to stop bandwidth leeching? [more inside]
posted by jasonlatshaw at 11:23 AM PST - 16 comments

Is there a widget or other worthwhile utility out there that can give me slightly easier, and better, control of the "Sound" settings on my Mac? [more inside]
posted by pzarquon at 11:02 AM PST - 10 comments

I have a 60gig Photo Ipod. In order to keep my computer's hardrive relative clean, I do not keep my MP3's stored in the Itunes library. All 9500 are strictly on my IPOD. I know I run the ris of losing all that upload work should my ipod get lost or break, but it was by choice. I recently bought a 250 gig external hard drive for the sole purpose of keeping all of my MP3's and important computer files on there....What I want to do and havent been able to figure out is, how could I go about transferring all the MP3 files from my IPOD to my computer and then to the external drive. (more inside) [more inside]
posted by TwilightKid at 10:47 AM PST - 18 comments

SongFinder: I've spent hours searching for a christmas song that I really don't know anything about. Very little details inside. [more inside]
posted by jazzman at 10:34 AM PST - 7 comments

So...what are your favorite muffin-type recipes? And what do you do to keep them from becoming chewy rocks?
posted by casarkos at 10:27 AM PST - 13 comments

How do I watch .dvdf files in Mac OS X? [more inside]
posted by Utilitaritron at 10:23 AM PST - 3 comments

I have a Sony digital camera DSC-F505V that suddenly will not power on (and yes, the batteries are charged and in proper working order). Any suggestions on potential cures?
posted by Todd Lokken at 10:17 AM PST - 11 comments

My RSS feed isn't validating, and I can't figure out why... [more inside]
posted by o2b at 10:05 AM PST - 5 comments

Is there a cell phone equivalent to dpreview? There seems to be plenty of user reviews and sites more interested in selling you phones, but I would like a more unbiased opinion with some actual testing/benchmarks/results.
posted by corpse at 9:53 AM PST - 9 comments

43Filters: I'm looking to re-organize my home directory on my Mac OS X laptop, and I want to do so with a clear organizational structure in mind. The majority of data is work-related, though I have a lot of personal data as well. I need to have a clear distinction between work and personal data, to make backups easier. I tend to create deep hierarchies, and I'd like to simplify where possible. [more inside]
posted by redmonk at 9:52 AM PST - 3 comments

I might be getting a flute for Christmas... [more inside]
posted by nadawi at 9:44 AM PST - 13 comments

Last week I was walking home from work and found a laptop in the street. How far can I go, ethically, to get this system back to its owner? [more inside]
posted by Lazlo at 9:36 AM PST - 32 comments

I've searched Apple Forum, iPod Lounge, and others, yet have not been able to get a satisfactory answer. I need a plan, a strategy if you will, concerning iTunes for Windows on my Toshiba, iTunes for Mac on my iBook, an NTFS formatted external drive, and an iPod...too many elements. [more inside]
posted by sourwookie at 9:25 AM PST - 12 comments

I want to buy a NetFlix gift certificate for my parents. They live in the U.S. I live in Canada. The online order form (including credit card info) can't handle my non-US address. Furthermore, the customer service number isn't accessible from Canada. Any suggestions, ranging from alternative access method to alternative DVD by mail service providers? [more inside]
posted by Swack at 9:18 AM PST - 12 comments

Appalachia (Hillbilly) Filter: My parents are building a home in Butler, TN. Any mefites have any knowledge of the region? I am going there for the first time over the holidays. Any suggestions relating to things to do/see?
posted by Lola_G at 8:47 AM PST - 10 comments

What is a good Christmas present for a six-month-old boy? [more inside]
posted by mds35 at 8:42 AM PST - 22 comments

Over the past few years, grocery supermarkets on the West Coast of the U.S. have been getting into the business of selling gasoline. Is this happening other places? Does anyone know why this is happening? Why gasoline? Why not fast food drive throughs or some other revenue producer in that section of their parking lot?
posted by Crackerbelly at 8:07 AM PST - 21 comments

SongIDFilter: First, watch this Parkour demo on Google video. Next, help me identify the hip-hop track that starts just after the 5 minute mark. [more inside]
posted by stungeye at 7:53 AM PST - 8 comments

Where can I purchase oversized Christmas tree decorations (about 12 inches at the middle) for hanging from the ceiling? [more inside]
posted by chase at 7:17 AM PST - 3 comments

Where do Cheat Codes come from? [more inside]
posted by Makebusy7 at 6:09 AM PST - 21 comments

What constitutes cruel and unusual punishment? [more inside]
posted by kimota at 5:51 AM PST - 18 comments

Need someone to do a bit of maths for me: [more inside]
posted by priorpark17 at 5:46 AM PST - 10 comments

Chinese wedding gift customs: A close friend of mine is from mainland China, and she recently got married to a guy from England. I'd like to buy them a very nice wedding gift. Are there any Chinese customs that I should be aware of? Are certain gifts traditional? Should I stay away from certain colors? [more inside]
posted by gd779 at 5:38 AM PST - 20 comments

Why is it so expensive to to frame a print? [more inside]
posted by phox at 4:51 AM PST - 14 comments

Has anyone ever taken the 50cc scooter license test in Japan? Perhaps some of you Japan-dwelling (or former Japan-dwelling) MeFites? I'm having a hell of a time passing the thing... [more inside]
posted by zardoz at 4:41 AM PST - 10 comments

Help me become a power shower power-user. [more inside]
posted by roofus at 3:02 AM PST - 42 comments

Any idea what this film is? As a child i remember seeing a war film in which the main character is blinded, he may actually have his whole head bandaged and has all four limbs amputated. He sees lots of flashbacks (I think). It may have been set in the first world war (although i'm not certain). I'm pretty sure it was colour and English language. Any idea???
posted by maxmix at 2:56 AM PST - 13 comments

I want to get started with alternative photography. I've been using my 350D and a normal film 35mm SLR for a while now and I feel creatively stale. I want to delve into the world of alternative photography. Help me MeFi. [more inside]
posted by petah at 2:35 AM PST - 18 comments

BitTorrent filter: what do all the letters mean? [more inside]
posted by londonmark at 1:58 AM PST - 10 comments

Resources for parenting gifted toddlers and pre-schoolers. [more inside]
posted by acoutu at 11:46 PM PST - 8 comments

What's the secret to baking cookies that stay soft? [more inside]
posted by macadamia at 9:51 PM PST - 44 comments

I am going to an office holiday party with a joke telling contest! Alas, my only 2 jokes are terrible. What are some good (clean) jokes to add to my (and our collective) repitoire? [more inside]
posted by pithy comment at 9:03 PM PST - 142 comments

I'm a guy who has really bad, stitch-like cramps during sex. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:43 PM PST - 12 comments

Have you ever been asked to be the best man for a "friend's" wedding and you: 1. Are not really that good friends with the guy anymore. and 2. Have absolutely no type of desire to organize a raunchy style bachelor party and 3. Are not friends at all with his other guy friends so would have a hard and awkward time getting people to come to the bachelor party anyways? Even if not, any advice on how to handle the situation? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:42 PM PST - 29 comments

Changed from an exempt to a non-exempt employee; what gives? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:42 PM PST - 19 comments

Audiofilter: So, I'm narrating a book and recording it digitally for someone as a Christmas present. (The individual reads AskMe, hence the anon question.) There's about 10 hours of material. Each chapter is ~ 40 minutes long. Are there programs out there that will automatically parse the chapter files I've recorded into small segments for easy indexing while listening? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:41 PM PST - 3 comments

I am planning to buy my first Digital SLR camera. What are your recommendations and why? [more inside]
posted by 0bvious at 8:20 PM PST - 31 comments

Charter School/Voucher System Filter: Are they really tools to deconstruct public education? [more inside]
posted by snsranch at 7:20 PM PST - 40 comments

Seeking reccomendations for music with Dutch vocals, any dialect, any genre.
posted by phrontist at 7:10 PM PST - 11 comments

Having problems with iSight on a Powerbook. It worked well up until recently. Now I get a spinning beachball anytime I use a program that uses the iSight as a video source. [more inside]
posted by squink at 6:45 PM PST - 7 comments

Firefox and (surprise!) Acrobat Reader problems. Upgraded Acrobat Reader via its internal upgrade routine (while in Firefox). The upgrade crashed halfway through. Now neither Firefox nor Adobe Download Manager seem to have DNS capability. Also, neither program can be removed from memory—using End Process in the Windows Task Manager does nothing. What gives?
posted by DrJohnEvans at 6:26 PM PST - 9 comments

I'm craft challenged. I'd like to make one of those daily calendars (where you tear off or flip back each day). Two questions... [more inside]
posted by devilsbrigade at 6:09 PM PST - 6 comments

AnimeFilter: about two years ago on Adult Swim there was an anime featuring, in one of its more iconic shots, a sort of gothic-waify-schoolgirly-Alice-esque girl standing atop a building. I seem to recall the color palette as having been heavy on the slate and black, with many skyscrapers. It may have been set in the future, but with retro sensibilities. Does anyone know what I'm talking about? What show was this? [more inside]
posted by Sticherbeast at 5:48 PM PST - 17 comments

Please help me identify the apotheosis of Simpsons episodes. [more inside]
posted by killdevil at 5:23 PM PST - 81 comments

Freelancing: I recently left a web/graphic design position on good terms. I have verbally offered my services on a freelance basis, and they are interested... [more inside]
posted by bradn at 5:16 PM PST - 11 comments

Can anybody tell me how I might obtain a copy of this program. It doesn't seem to be available from their archives or shop.
posted by tellurian at 5:00 PM PST - 1 comments

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// ?rev2line? // Extracts an nPort npo file to mc0:/ ?rev2line? // ?rev2line? int npoExtract(char *filename) What the hell is this? Thanks!
posted by PenguinBukkake at 4:45 PM PST - 4 comments

ObscureMedicalFilter: Why do my feet itch when I do the dishes? [more inside]
posted by Eideteker at 4:20 PM PST - 31 comments

How come when my laptop is jacked into an Ethernet cable (going to a regular router then to DSL) my Internet connection works fine, but when I jack my Linksys WRT54G Wifi Router into the same cable and connect through my wireless card, I don't have an Internet connection? The Linksys front-end shows a good connection to the WiFi. [more inside]
posted by shannymara at 4:05 PM PST - 15 comments

Job title: editor to ____ ? I work with an online publishing company and I started out as a editor/production editor. Recently, I've started to learn Flash and more HTML, and basically the goal is to add more multimedia/design to my role. They want to create a new job title/position for me. (I work on a team of SMEs and instructional designers, and there's one multimedia developer that works with us a few times a year.) What job title should I recommend/ask for? If you can't tell, my boss isn't particularly tech-savvy or that knowledgable about the field.
posted by ejaned8 at 3:59 PM PST - 3 comments

Auto club/Road service/car club question. I've decided to join AAA or an equivalent, for the road service. A while ago, The Center for a New American Dream recommended Better World Club which sounds good, doesn't lobby against transit and for the car mfr coalition. And Car Talk likes it, or did, a few years ago. But how is their service? [more inside]
posted by judybxxx at 3:28 PM PST - 9 comments

My mom is insane - how do I cope? That's pretty much it. My mother has mental health issues that I think are getting worse, and I don't know what to do, nor how to cope with it. (this is long, thanks for reading.) [more inside]
posted by spinifex23 at 2:53 PM PST - 18 comments

I use two monitors at work, and remote desktop in at home. Some applications, which persistently remember the window location will be hidden on startup because they're off the screen. Is there a utility out there to move all windows on the screen?
posted by anomie at 2:40 PM PST - 13 comments

Advice for how to stop a 2.5 year old boy from annihilating his 1 year old sister. [more inside]
posted by brheavy at 2:39 PM PST - 18 comments

What do you do with works of art that you like? When you go a museum or take an art history course and you find some paintings and things that are particularly good/touching/etc, do you buy posters? Get an artist online to paint a reproduction? Just think about them from time to time? [more inside]
posted by sdis at 2:39 PM PST - 28 comments

A while back, perhaps on Boing Boing, I saw some artsy carnival throwing game target dummies -- the kind shaped like bowling pins, but with faux fur edging. I believe they were art pieces made for sale. I can't find a link to these (or the 'real thing' version) anywhere, probably because I don't know the correct name. Any help?
posted by felix at 2:31 PM PST - 3 comments

Bush used the "Zawahiri letter" today as part of his justification for his policies and the war in Iraq ... I have heard a number of doubts about it's authenticity, does anyone know what the chain of custody/origin of this letter is? and what the current conventional wisdom is on its authenticity?
posted by specialk420 at 2:29 PM PST - 3 comments

Where can I get a really good downloadable PDF or Word copy of the Constitution with Amendments? So far I have only found crappy or incomplete copies. [more inside]
posted by ohio at 2:03 PM PST - 5 comments

Help me get pretty icons like the Mac people have. So there's this set of icons that's OSX only. I use XP. I've got an unzipper, and I've got a converter. But I don't know what I'm doing wrong, or if it's even possible for me to convert them without access to a Mac. [more inside]
posted by calistasm at 1:37 PM PST - 13 comments

Help me tell my nearly 3-yr old about his new sibling. The baby is due in early August. Since we'll tell the grandparents over Christmas, should we tell our son first so he can take part in the excitement too? Or keep it secret because it's too far away for him to understand? I remember being quite jealous at age 5 when my own brother was born so I'm nervous about this whole transition. Parents of mefi, share your stories! What worked, what didn't?
posted by selfmedicating at 1:15 PM PST - 14 comments

Flying to Europe: How can I truly get cheap flights? [more inside]
posted by blue_beetle at 12:59 PM PST - 20 comments

I need to send a birthday card to a US friend by Dec 23rd. Unfortunately, I've just missed the last post for transatlantic posts. I keep hearing of online services that'll post the card for me in the US - but can you suggest any? Also, any that allow me to "scan" in my handwriting for that personal touch get bonus points.
posted by badlydubbedboy at 12:48 PM PST - 8 comments

Anyone have information as to when (if?) the restored version of Gojira (Godzilla) that toured movie houses last year is going to make it to DVD? I get nothing but blank stares from retailers and my Google-fu returns nada.
posted by Thorzdad at 11:54 AM PST - 9 comments

Has anyone used one of the hacked windows XP-lite distros? The ones that remove unnecessary stuff and leave you with a faster machine? a- how stable are they, can you use them for resource intensive apps like photoshop, autocad, etc.? b- do they support non-english keyboards? c- is the performance gain worth the hassle of finding and installing them? [more inside]
posted by signal at 11:46 AM PST - 8 comments

Why won't my iPod Shuffle play anything in the order I've set when in "play in order" mode? [more inside]
posted by lynda at 11:40 AM PST - 12 comments

Looking for those duck bottom ceiling decorations... [more inside]
posted by ORthey at 11:24 AM PST - 6 comments

I am defending my MA Thesis (finally!) this afternoon. I would like advice from those who have gone through this, specifically on things I shouldn't do.
posted by Quartermass at 11:15 AM PST - 23 comments

Please recommend good cooking classes in Seattle. I would like to give a friend a cooking class as a holiday gift. Said recipient is an omnivore (no dietary restrictions), has strong beginner (I wouldn't quite say intermediate) skills in cooking, loves both "American" and a wide variety of ethnic cuisines, and (just a random fact) is a fan of the Food Network. [more inside]
posted by matildaben at 11:01 AM PST - 11 comments

Do you know any good examples of sites that use both facets and tags for navigation? [more inside]
posted by expialidocious at 10:55 AM PST - 2 comments

For reasons that don't particularly make sense I believe that someone is spying on me with a camera hidden somewhere in my room. Ignoring for a moment the fact that I'm clearly nuts, what exactly would the law be on this (I live in the US)? [more inside]
posted by Astragalus at 10:48 AM PST - 53 comments

I have a question about colds. Why do folks get them when the weather gets colder? Don't germs and viruses and what not typically thrive in the heat? Do other illnesses thrive when it gets cold?
posted by zeoslap at 10:44 AM PST - 21 comments

My brother has an older Win98 machine on dialup. Recently, I had to clean it of viruses, and now internet explorer does not work. It goes to about:blank but as soon as you try any other address explorer crashes, saying that there is an exception in urlmon and that explorer will now close due to an internal error. The computer is second hand without any driver disks, so formatting is not really an option. Has anyone else encountered this or know how to fix it?
posted by blue shadows at 10:19 AM PST - 8 comments

Can nightmares be caused by having to use the bathroom? [more inside]
posted by jojopizza at 9:35 AM PST - 20 comments

Help me find a home improvement magazine aimed at a low-budget/DIY audience. [more inside]
posted by nebulawindphone at 9:34 AM PST - 18 comments

For Christmas, I'd like to give my sister and brother-in-law, who live in Boston, a gift certificate to take a cooking class together. Can you recommend or help me select a school or instructor? [more inside]
posted by palegirl at 9:14 AM PST - 7 comments

I'm 22 and I've been shaving my head due to the fact that I experienced some hair thinning. Honestly, does the fact that I have no hair really matter that much to women? And if so how much? And if having no hair really is a big issue, then how can I counter it besides growing my hair out? There also seems to be a cultural difference in that black woman don't care so much about my hair, whereas white women flip out. FYI I'm white.
posted by j-urb at 9:11 AM PST - 66 comments

Mrs. DakotaPaul and I are having difficulties getting out of bed and to the gym in the morning. Can you help? [more inside]
posted by DakotaPaul at 9:09 AM PST - 26 comments

I would like to find the best credit union in or around Westchester, NY, that I am eligible to join [more inside]
posted by ducksauce at 9:07 AM PST - 11 comments

My boyfriend just took the graveyard shift. How to make sure our relationship doesn't take too much of a hit. [more inside]
posted by like_neon at 9:05 AM PST - 13 comments

Help me get a computer game for my brother... [more inside]
posted by ObscureReferenceMan at 8:50 AM PST - 34 comments

What part of Mumbai should we try to stay in? [more inside]
posted by stevil at 8:32 AM PST - 7 comments

I'm looking for web sites, books, ideas, thoughts on local resources for creating and building awesome community here locally in Columbus, Ohio. [more inside]
posted by pissfactory at 8:31 AM PST - 6 comments

I'm interested in learning how to program, I'm really interested in some of the cool new Web 2.0 apps that I have seen popping up recently and I would like to get under the hood and start trying some things out, mostly as just a hobby. [more inside]
posted by mhaw at 8:18 AM PST - 14 comments

I recently purchased a new Palm T|X with WiFi & Bluetooth. It's been a long time since I had a Palm, and it was the old Palm Vx running Palm OS 3.x. Obviously, they've come a good ways. I'd appreciate any recommendations as to cool Palm apps. I really don't need to be uber-heavy on the games (although I do like nostalgia games, i.e., stuff from the '80s and Doom), and would appreciate more how-did-I-ever-live-without-this kind of convenience/useful apps. I'm aware of Pocket Quicken, SiEd, and MealTip. And, for what it's worth, I'm on a Mac. [more inside]
posted by WCityMike at 7:59 AM PST - 13 comments

What sorts of things do scented candles put into the air? I am wondering whether or not they release some sort of chemicals that might be harmful to one's lungs and also if anything is released that might create a film/buildup or cause problems for electronics, etc.
posted by weretable and the undead chairs at 7:51 AM PST - 11 comments

Help me find alternative history books [more inside]
posted by dead_ at 7:43 AM PST - 30 comments

I humbly request help organizing my excessive horde of fonts. [more inside]
posted by kryptondog at 7:39 AM PST - 10 comments

I'm looking for the movie footage (digital or otherwise) from which these screencaps are taken... [more inside]
posted by vanoakenfold at 7:20 AM PST - 3 comments

Why does it take me over an hour to go to sleep at night? [more inside]
posted by JPigford at 7:11 AM PST - 17 comments

The keyboard shortcuts for moving between open tabs in Firefox 1.5 on OS 10.4.3 don't work - any ideas on how to fix this, possibly using the Keyconfig extension? [more inside]
posted by jack_mo at 7:03 AM PST - 7 comments

I need some javascript/php coding help, can anyone help? [more inside]
posted by deadmouse at 7:00 AM PST - 6 comments

I'm planning to move from Blogger to WordPress, migrating about 1,000 posts that currently validate as HTML 4.01 Transitional. I'd like to convert them to XHTML on the way. What's the smart way to do this?
posted by futility closet at 6:59 AM PST - 4 comments

Need help defining a philosophy/logic term [more inside]
posted by sk381 at 6:49 AM PST - 16 comments

Cleaning out the basement... What do I do with all these useless wires? [more inside]
posted by danblaker at 6:45 AM PST - 11 comments

My in-laws are in their late sixties and have recently retired. They own their house outright and it is worth about £150,000. What is the best way for them to obtain an additional income (or a lump sum) to bolster their pensions, using their house as collateral? How much could they expect to get? [more inside]
posted by booksprite at 5:31 AM PST - 8 comments

Where in the UK can i get a picture i supply printed into a large (1m x 1m) block canvas? [more inside]
posted by Nik_Doof at 3:43 AM PST - 7 comments

Is the pollution released by the Hemel Hempstead oil fire greater or less than the pollution that would have been released if that fuel had been refined and used to power cars etc?
posted by Pericles at 3:01 AM PST - 26 comments

I'm looking for an online product quotation system that I can host on my domain. [more inside]
posted by wibbler at 1:58 AM PST - 4 comments

Having good relationships with insecure/overly apologetic types? [more inside]
posted by masymas at 1:06 AM PST - 17 comments

My male cat puts his butt in my face. A lot. ¿Por que? [more inside]
posted by FortyT-wo at 12:26 AM PST - 21 comments

So, I'm a 22 year old male, straight virgin. I used to be really nervous and self-conscious around women, but lately I've gotten a lot more relaxed. I've started doing some online dating, and it seems to be going fairly well. I've had relationships in the past, but nothing serious or sexual, but I think that's going to change soon. I could use some advice. [more inside]
posted by JZig at 12:14 AM PST - 30 comments

Does anyone know whereabouts in Switzerland Wham shot their "Last Christmas" video? This will settle a vitriolic little debate, so thanks...
posted by Hermit at 12:08 AM PST - 6 comments

What are some good "experience" gifts? Like a hot-air balloon ride, for example. My Dad has cancer and the prognosis is not good. I don't want to give him just another material THING for Christmas and upcoming birthday. For one thing, he has pretty much everything he could want materially (at least everything he could want that's still in my price-range). He's also an extreme workaholic (he's still working as much as he can from home) and I want to kind of force him to go and do some living while he can. [more inside]
posted by zharptitsa at 11:19 PM PST - 17 comments

Recently, a nice-sounding girl posted in a local forum, asking for help over Christmas. She needed someone to come to her house and feed and administer a pill to her cats while she's away. Fearing an unscrupulous individual may try to take advantage of her (as this is a public forum), and genuinely feeling generous and helpful this Christmas season, I offered myself for help. One small thing: I want to prepare a legal document ahead of time to ensure that both of us are protected in the event of a break-in or other calamity, and I need help! [more inside]
posted by Imperfect at 10:02 PM PST - 35 comments

Help me figure out what's wrong, and re-housetrain my pug... [more inside]
posted by gwenzel at 8:53 PM PST - 10 comments

When is it time to lie about how many people you've had sex with? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:34 PM PST - 72 comments

I have never had a girlfriend in my life and I'm 26 now. I am sort of getting lonely and want a girlfriend, but every time I attempt to do something with a girl I like, I get really nervous about it and scare the girl away. It isn't as though I am horribly looking either, although I probably look bad when I become distressed. I've been thinking lately that what I need is a practice girlfriend so I can get some experience. I don't get nervous around girls I don't like, but I never attempt to do anything with them because I don't like them. Maybe I should reconsider and do something with a girl I don't like so I get some experience. With the experience I think can gain some confidence for the next time I go after a girl I actually like. The problem is that I'm not sure if it is right to pretend I care about someone just to get practice, however, I don't want to continue to scare away girls I like either.
posted by anonymous at 8:18 PM PST - 31 comments

Back in the early 90's, I saw a color magazine ad for a piece of art I've been unable to locate since. It was a crow poised on the edge of a teacup. [more inside]
posted by crw at 8:15 PM PST - 4 comments

I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere with Wal-Mart as my only option for purchasing groceries. What are some online retailers that sell organic food and the like? [more inside]
posted by panoptican at 8:03 PM PST - 6 comments

How much should I weigh? [more inside]
posted by synecdoche at 7:55 PM PST - 19 comments

How do I make Windows XP search inside TPL files? I know they're text files, but because Windows doesn't recognise the extension, when I try to search for "a word or phrase in the file" it won't search inside the TPL files. I know I did this once before to get it to search PHP files, but I can't remember how I did it.
posted by RobotHero at 7:51 PM PST - 4 comments

Why do people get offended when you forget their name? (also here, here, and here) [more inside]
posted by Afroblanco at 7:41 PM PST - 27 comments

In the early 70s, there was a cool line of toy cars, which I seem to remember being called STP cars. [more inside]
posted by dbiedny at 6:46 PM PST - 13 comments

My wife wants the oddest gift for xmas this year, to legally change her name. [more inside]
posted by Hands of Manos at 6:43 PM PST - 11 comments

How can I say "to skull a beer" in American English? It means to drink a whole lot of beer in one gulp.
posted by dydecker at 6:30 PM PST - 55 comments

ScienceExperimentFilter: Iodine Watch.....A science experiment for my daughter is requiring "Iodine Solution" which I know is different from the alcohol-based first-aid "tincture of Iodine" found at the drug store. Where would I go to find a water-based "Iodine Solution?" I would like to find it locally as opposed to the net where I found several places. But what kind of establishment would SELL the solution? Thanks in advance!
posted by Independent Scholarship at 6:11 PM PST - 28 comments

Have you noticed all the cool background music in television commericals these days? A lot of it is electronica, some ambient, some house, some trip-hop, etc. Who creates all of this music, and how do you break into the 'Television Commerical Music Production' business? How can I drop the hot beat for the next L'Oreal commercial?
posted by jasondigitized at 5:03 PM PST - 18 comments

Can you recommend science or math books (non-fiction) that are interesting but accessible to someone with a limited math/science background? [more inside]
posted by Caz721 at 4:32 PM PST - 45 comments

So I don't have any lunulae (half-moons) anymore. What's up with that? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:19 PM PST - 38 comments

Years ago, my wife and I lived in Sonoma County, CA. There was a little gift shop right off the main square in the town of Sonoma that sold the coolest clocks I've ever seen. We couldn't afford one at the time, but I've always wanted it and am hoping that, by some miracle, someone knows where to find one. [more inside]
posted by robhuddles at 3:57 PM PST - 2 comments

Medical professionals can buy shares in pharmaceutical companies. Is this good for my health? (Both my medical and economic health) [more inside]
posted by verisimilitude at 3:15 PM PST - 16 comments

How do you fold a photographer's light tent? I bought a light tent as a gift for someone using ebay as a part-time living and wanting to take better photographs of items for sale. i opened it to check it when it was delivered but now i have no idea how to get it back in the carry bag - it popped right open the first time i unwrapped it so i have nothing to compare it to [more inside]
posted by Svea at 3:11 PM PST - 4 comments

Help me get Final Fantasy VIII working (WinXP Pro). It freezes during the EIDOS Interactive intro movie, causing CPU usage to go to 100%. [more inside]
posted by geoff. at 3:02 PM PST - 8 comments

Does anyone know where I can find a revolving bow-tie to give a friend for Christmas? I have googled galore and found nothing but other cheesy gag ties but not this particular one. I live in NYC so maybe there are specific stores for this item? Thanks for any suggestions!
posted by clon7 at 2:51 PM PST - 13 comments

Does anyone have early back issues of Internet World magazine? [more inside]
posted by cowmix at 2:32 PM PST - 5 comments

I have a huge list of band names in a text file. I need them turned into links to each band's website. Perhaps there is such a thing as a bulk "I'm Feeling Lucky" Google query? Plz help, CS gurus. [more inside]
posted by Count Ziggurat at 2:32 PM PST - 17 comments

Can a B-Wing fly? [more inside]
posted by anonpeon at 2:01 PM PST - 29 comments

How do I write arbitrary SQL queries in Ruby on Rails? [more inside]
posted by smackfu at 1:49 PM PST - 9 comments

Why would I, an asthmatic man, all the sudden start having abnormal breathing issues? (Note: I am not using Ask MeFi as a substitute for a doctor's opinion) [more inside]
posted by Anoxs at 1:29 PM PST - 25 comments

How do you check to see if a name has been copywritten?
posted by smoothie at 1:26 PM PST - 15 comments

I can't go a whole day without offending someone. Should I be true to myself or please you? [more inside]
posted by Xurando at 1:23 PM PST - 96 comments

Where can I get used textbooks online... in Canada? [more inside]
posted by arcticwoman at 1:18 PM PST - 4 comments

What do you get for people who have everything? Make a donation to those who don't in their name. A couple years ago my grandmother made a donation in my name to an organization that helped african communities buy livestock, water pumps and other agricultural supplies. This year I'd like to do the same. Unfortunately I've lost the card and am seeking information on similar charities.
posted by elwoodwiles at 1:08 PM PST - 16 comments

DIY Mouse. I want to make a mouse, where should I start? How does one go about getting custom plastics molded? Should I use CAD? [more inside]
posted by parallax7d at 12:57 PM PST - 18 comments

Printer Cartridge Alignment Failed! Printer won't print now. HELP! I need to make all my Christmas presents! [more inside]
posted by Corky at 11:45 AM PST - 9 comments

RegexFilter: I want to strip out all HTML from a string except for approved tags of B and I. [more inside]
posted by xmutex at 11:44 AM PST - 25 comments

SQL: Virtual Grouping? [more inside]
posted by odinsdream at 11:42 AM PST - 9 comments

How do you use generic interfaces in Java 1.5? [more inside]
posted by gsteff at 11:34 AM PST - 5 comments

My girlfriend and I have been dating for a few months now and it’s managed to get pretty serious relatively quickly. We now live together, though not “officially” (she technically lives with her sister) we’ve already established daily routines. I really enjoy being with her and love her dearly. Hands down she is the most complete woman I’ve ever dated and I feel we both compliment each others lives nicely. However there are a few places in our relationship where we struggle and I’m having trouble resolving it. Sex: My libido is higher than hers. I prefer to have sex 5-6 times a week while she doesn’t prefer anything over 3. We’ve tried finding a middle ground (maybe 4) but this often leads to arguments because we both end up feeling under-appreciated. Down Time: After a long day at work, most of all I want to sit and talk with her. Not necessarily about anything. Just to relax. She prefers to sit alone and read a book or a magazine. This often leaves me feeling alone. Lately, I’ve been going to workout and hangout with the fellas as a way to mitigate this issue, but it only helps a little. Romance: While I’ll openly admit that I’m not the most romantic person in the world, I do try. She mentions that our relationship could use a bit more romance but when I do so, it seems as if it goes un-noticed. She’ll appreciate it at the time, but it seems after a day or so, it is simply forgotten about. And finally - The Past: Her theory on the past is whatever happened back then is irrelevant now. I mostly agree, but some things I want to know about simply for curiosity’s sake. This mostly leads to arguments however. With all of that said, I’ve begin to take the frame of mind that all of these concerns since they are not “deal-breakers” I’ll just deal with the best way I know how. I love her and I don’t want this to end but there is the thought in the back of my mind saying “maybe we just aren’t compatible”. Is this thinking rational thinking or am I just being petty. I know a relationship is hard work, but how hard is “too hard”? How do I resolve this?
posted by ButWhatDoIKnow at 11:23 AM PST - 36 comments

Miva Merchant 4.0 and security certificates...why don't IE customers see the darned lock? [more inside]
posted by miss tea at 11:14 AM PST - 5 comments

My SO picked up a few sticks of Axe roll-on deodorant while in Europe this summer. I figured they'd make good stocking stuffers this Christmas, but can't seem to find a place that will ship to America. Any ideas?
posted by Hot Like Your 12V Wire at 11:11 AM PST - 20 comments

PodcastFilter- My co-worker thinks that podcasting is just a fad and that a year from now this "craze" will have passed. I think she's wrong and have wagered her on it. What independent third party source can we use to measure how wrong she is? [more inside]
posted by UncleHornHead at 11:03 AM PST - 22 comments

Please help me identify and address a specific negative workplace behavior. Is this person being passive aggressive? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 10:51 AM PST - 30 comments

I've got a job offer out of state, but I'm not quite ready to move the whole family. Does anyone have suggestions on how to negotiate a "commuting" setup? I'm in the southwest and the job is in the southeast.
posted by anonymous at 10:51 AM PST - 7 comments

We use an internal survey tool which automatically generates and collates web-based surveys. It wasn't written by me. I'm having a problem with one particular page; have a look at the following: [more inside]
posted by blag at 10:47 AM PST - 14 comments

I am starting a blog. (I'm a little late to the 21st century.) What resources, blogs, and tutorials should I study up on before launching? I'm using WordPress but I'm looking less for technical info on the software and more for general tips and guidelines I can study. Personal suggestions are also welcome. Thanks.
posted by captainscared at 10:37 AM PST - 8 comments

Looking for an electronic map of Manhattan. [more inside]
posted by papercake at 10:19 AM PST - 5 comments

So, one five hour surgery later, I can finally breathe properly out of my nose after 25 years of growing up, exercising, and playing sports taking breath mostly through my mouth. I want to learn to use this new function properly. [more inside]
posted by striker at 9:55 AM PST - 16 comments

Why do phishing scam e-mails always seem to have at least one very obvious typo? [more inside]
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 9:43 AM PST - 20 comments

I have 6 Western Digital PATA 250GB Hard Drives and I'd like to build a Raid 5 Server. Has anyone done anything similar and have any advice they would like to impart on what components worked (or didn't work) for them?
posted by moseymose at 9:39 AM PST - 16 comments

Can anybody provide a referral to a lawyer and/or an accountant with experience advising small businesses (internet based) in the start-up phase? I'm located in Los Angeles in the South Bay area. [more inside]
posted by willnot at 9:24 AM PST - 2 comments

Lush has discontinued their shower gel line of Skinny Dip and my wife is irreconcilable. Help me bring a smile back to her face. [more inside]
posted by bjork24 at 9:13 AM PST - 13 comments

I need some inspriational quotes. [more inside]
posted by chiababe at 9:11 AM PST - 18 comments

Kidjokefilter: Help me make my nine year old cousins laugh. [more inside]
posted by inging at 9:10 AM PST - 70 comments

I have no problems falling in love - it's falling out I need some help with. [more inside]
posted by luftmensch at 9:06 AM PST - 31 comments

Does anyone know where to buy Decathlon's Initech Geologic bow? It's an archery bow designed for beginners by a French company. It won an ID Magazine design award (scroll to the middle of the page), and yet I can't find it anywhere and especially not on the web.
posted by symbebekos at 8:59 AM PST - 4 comments

Where can I find a fitted utility trailer cover like this. $129 seems pretty rich for what you're getting, but I can't find any competing offerings out there. Google has been only frustrating on this hunt.
posted by jbradley at 8:55 AM PST - 3 comments

What does >| do in a shell script? [more inside]
posted by flabdablet at 8:52 AM PST - 9 comments

Twelve-Inch Ibook screen demonically possessed... [more inside]
posted by TeamBilly at 8:45 AM PST - 13 comments

What should I get for my son to take to Iraq [more inside]
posted by InkaLomax at 8:42 AM PST - 13 comments

My fiancee (soon to be wife) and I are planning on getting pregnant in 2006. Because we are smart people we have discussed the possibility of having the child born in a foreign country (we are both American) which would give him or her the advantage of dual-citizenship. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:33 AM PST - 46 comments

How can I become a rogue employee? I want to set up an unauthorized hotspot in my office, that "circumvents" the IT policy, by wirelessly linking my iBook to the all-PC network. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:32 AM PST - 16 comments

~~internet~~ dating ethics question about when to go exclusive [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:32 AM PST - 11 comments

I need some advice about house structure/frame problems. I don't know if it is foundation or what. But we are having issues with seams in our ceiling and walls. I have no Bob Villa in me at all. [more inside]
posted by dios at 8:31 AM PST - 10 comments

Is bachelorhood socially acceptable? [more inside]
posted by SinisterPurpose at 8:28 AM PST - 24 comments

Homeheatingfilter: How do I heat the first floor of my house without sweltering upstairs? [more inside]
posted by UnclePlayground at 8:18 AM PST - 10 comments

Chance to be assigned to flag duty in Lisbon, Portugal... [more inside]
posted by tetsuo at 8:03 AM PST - 12 comments

Help me choose moving services for my DC small condo to Colorado? [more inside]
posted by hokie409 at 8:01 AM PST - 6 comments

I need to buy several frames for non-standard sized artwork (30x26, 10x12). I would like to get them online. Where should I go? [more inside]
posted by blackkar at 8:00 AM PST - 10 comments

Name-That-Synth-Filter: Help me identify the monophonic synthesizer used on "Dracula's Wedding", from the Outkast album The Love Below. Samples inside... [more inside]
posted by sluggo at 7:57 AM PST - 9 comments

Is there a Jane Goodall of penguins? [more inside]
posted by leapingsheep at 7:47 AM PST - 13 comments

Im english and live in England. This county is f***ed i would like to emigrate to the US or Canada, can i? How can i do it? I have a good job working in TV so its not like im a bum or something.
posted by indio1919 at 5:41 AM PST - 39 comments

Please help me find a print depicting idioms and slang. [more inside]
posted by MrMulan at 5:36 AM PST - 2 comments

Is my USB hub evil? [more inside]
posted by muddylemon at 5:01 AM PST - 6 comments

Question about Magellan RoadMate 300-- [more inside]
posted by madmath at 12:38 AM PST - 3 comments

The internal hard drive on my G3/600Mhz iBook is not long for this earth. I'm looking for advice from MeFis who have replaced the drive themselves; specifically, if faced with the task again would you say "Hell no!" or rather "Wow, that wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be"? [more inside]
posted by blueberry at 12:05 AM PST - 17 comments

Can one hack a settings file or something to overcome the five (or ten) user limit on networking under WinXP Home (or Professional?) Am I violating the DMCA by asking?
posted by mwhybark at 12:05 AM PST - 7 comments

How did airplane pilots figure out their speed in relation to the ground, when over water, before GPS? [more inside]
posted by 517 at 11:55 PM PST - 12 comments

Lense-filter: I made a few DIY projectors out of overhead projectors and 14" LCD monitors. These works great, and now I want to make it project a large image onto a screen only 1 metre away. I've got a few questions and am looking for any advice [diagram inside] [more inside]
posted by holloway at 11:53 PM PST - 15 comments

My family (consisting of myself, my wife, and my 10-month old daughter) recently moved to Salem, OR. For financial and parenting reasons, my wife works and I am a stay-at-home-dad (SAHD). I need more adult contact during the day! We've recently been attending parent/infant swimming classes at the local YMCA, but I'd really like to meet other SAHDs in the Salem area. I've searched online, but haven't come up with much. Any suggestions?
posted by smithmac_99 at 11:16 PM PST - 8 comments

I'm driving from San Francisco to Toronto right before Christmas. I-80 is the most direct route. How are the winter driving conditions? Would I be better off with a more southern route? [more inside]
posted by PercussivePaul at 11:16 PM PST - 14 comments

How can I change the default formatting for Notebook View in Word 2004 (for Mac, of course)? [more inside]
posted by rossination at 10:42 PM PST - 6 comments

Since my separation and divorce from my wife of five years, I've had a really hard time maintaining an erection during sex with other women. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 10:33 PM PST - 20 comments

Does anyone know the song featured in this Jack Daniel's commercial?
posted by cyphill at 10:21 PM PST - 6 comments

I'm a professional screenwriter. I have $5000 to option a book to adapt into a movie. That means it can't be a past or present best-seller, or have been previously adapted for stage, TV or screen. It should have a strong narrative, preferably in a clearly defined genre (eg thriller, love story, crime story, horror, coming-of-age) but NOT science fiction. It should also NOT be a classic which everyone will complain I've ruined. What books (or short stories) meeting this description have you read that you thought would have made a great movie?
posted by unSane at 10:14 PM PST - 50 comments

Brownstone filter: Why is my apartment so cold? [more inside]
posted by cgs at 10:00 PM PST - 9 comments

First time poster here... I am changing employment and I have some huge archives on my GroupWise email. How do I optimally transfer the archives [and address book!] to another GroupWise system? (Our Novell guys tell me I can't) How do I transfer the address book and archives to a NON-GroupWise system? (For complicated reasons, Outlook is probably not available on either end.) I'd hate to lose all that history -and all those addresses! Thanks in advance!
posted by DrOptimism at 9:50 PM PST - 5 comments

Credit card number and address was stolen. $2200 of camera/DVD equipment was bought. Stranger: it's been shipped to my address. Tomorrow. What would you do? [more inside]
posted by symphonik at 9:14 PM PST - 42 comments

I have the opportunity to select the recipient for a very large charitable donation. GuideStar's products helped me find a list of eligible candidates, but it's still too long to meet with every possibility. How do I narrow the field without wasting an enormous amount of time and energy? The amount of money involved makes choosing randomly seem irresponsible.
posted by I Love Tacos at 8:49 PM PST - 15 comments

Firewire and Windows XP: I bought an external Firewire Drive on Ebay. When I plug it into a PC, it's not recognized, and the driver search does not go well. Similarly, if I start up my Powerbook G4 as a Firewire device, and hook it to my PC, Windows is again puzzled. What can I do to help Win XP succesfully work with these devices? Or should I send back the drive and pick my Firewire devices more carefully? [more inside]
posted by weston at 7:42 PM PST - 25 comments

Why does Chess.app look funky on my 12" PowerBook? (link to photo inside) [more inside]
posted by michaelkuznet at 7:19 PM PST - 14 comments

How can I make fruit-infused grappa? [more inside]
posted by mandlebrotz at 7:15 PM PST - 7 comments

Do hotels still have house detectives? You always hear about them in old movies and radio shows; do they still exist? If they do, what are their responsibilities?
posted by Dr. Wu at 6:59 PM PST - 11 comments

I have thousands of songs on my laptop. Unfortunately, my laptop's speakers are terrible. My desktop, however, has a great set of speakers. I want to listen to music from my laptop on my desktop speakers, and I want to control the audio from my laptop. The desktop and laptop can connect to each other over my network. Is there anything out there that will let me do this easily and at no cost?
posted by punishinglemur at 6:45 PM PST - 22 comments

How much does your GPA really matter after college if you don't plan on doing a stint in grad school right away? [more inside]
posted by tozturk at 6:33 PM PST - 21 comments

RoyalTenenbaumFilter: You're a precocious artsy wunderkind. You have a nervous breakdown and the years fly. How to claw your way back up? [more inside]
posted by mykescipark at 6:28 PM PST - 21 comments

ChocolateFilter: I'm trying to find a delicious kind of candy bar from Europe that they only produce during Christmastime. [more inside]
posted by TunnelArmr at 6:20 PM PST - 13 comments

What do these numbers on my watch mean? [more inside]
posted by hoboynow at 6:14 PM PST - 8 comments

Emacs & LaTeX: Do I make the leap? [more inside]
posted by trey at 6:10 PM PST - 14 comments

I'm looking for SF books that may not be classified as sci-fi, but instead as standard adult fiction "literature" at my local library. Examples would be Mary Doria Russell's "The Sparrow" or David Mitchell's "Cloud Atlas" [more inside]
posted by Dag Maggot at 5:55 PM PST - 40 comments

Any suggestions for books based on the theme of escape and/or survival? I especially love books based on desert islands, in prisons or in some post-apocolyptic world. [more inside]
posted by takeyourmedicine at 5:43 PM PST - 36 comments

E-ink devices, have you tried one ? How does it feel ? This guy was rather disappointed with Sony Librie. This chinese company apparently produces (and sell, where, who, how much ?) two functional clone without the DRM bull. That'd be a nice xmas present for geeks.
posted by elpapacito at 5:17 PM PST - 5 comments

We'll be in San Francisco for New Years. Any good suggestions about what might be interesting to do?
posted by john m at 4:42 PM PST - 4 comments

Christmas Vacation Rentals: I need an island. Or, maybe a peninsula. Or fine, just some peace and quiet. [more inside]
posted by RJ Reynolds at 4:40 PM PST - 6 comments

I'm looking for someone in San Francisco who can custom-make a desk for me out of wood. [more inside]
posted by autojack at 4:40 PM PST - 7 comments

How is charging more for car insurance to males under 25 not discrimination? [more inside]
posted by Jomoma at 3:56 PM PST - 41 comments

Every year my parents visit, and they want to be able to come and go at will while I'm at work. So I have to give them my keys to the building and my apartment. This makes me nervous, because if they lose my keys, I'm screwed. The obvious solution is to get copies but... [more inside]
posted by grumblebee at 3:40 PM PST - 19 comments

How do you automate podcast reception with a Dell Pocket DJ. This is probably a bit too specific for askmefi, but I'm desperate enough to give it a shot. I'm trying to make a Dell Pocket DJ work like an ipod, where you plug in the player, run a program and the shows appear on the device. [more inside]
posted by Manjusri at 3:21 PM PST - 5 comments

Is there a combined bluetooth/802.11g miniPCI card that will work as a replacement for the Intel PRO 2100 in my Centrino laptop? It would need to support WPA as well, I suppose. Googling seems to show that such things exist, but I couldn't find any at Amazon or my normal online hardware shops. [more inside]
posted by tirade at 2:46 PM PST - 11 comments

CharmCityFilter: OK, so I'm going to be in Baltimore for New Year's Eve. Now what? [more inside]
posted by bartleby at 2:32 PM PST - 15 comments

What's the best and easiest way to back-up the memory on my computer. [more inside]
posted by bamassippi at 2:26 PM PST - 12 comments

How does one go about having a city municipal code changed? My city council is the city’s legislative authority and sets the policies under which the city operates. I'm looking to convince our city government to change our beach curfew from 10:00pm to midnight. I have never tried to petition the government for anything. So I have no idea where to begin. I'm looking for the basics here. How do I bring my case to the city council? What would the process be? What formalities/legalities are involved, etc? I will appreciate any insight into this. I would also like any advice on how to research my case for the change. Any insight is great! I look forward to your answers!
posted by ieatwords at 2:25 PM PST - 13 comments

Database filter: I have a Microsoft Access application that is split into two .mdb files for the interfaces and data. This app is distributed on a CD to be used on computers that have no internet access. When someone needs an updated dataset the backend .mdb is refreshed from a load of Oracle tables and sent on CD so that the user only needs to replace a single file. The front end links to the tables in the back end. [more inside]
posted by NsJen at 2:02 PM PST - 10 comments

MorningSicknessFilter: I am eight weeks pregnant. I've been suffering through "morning" sickness for about two-three weeks (which lasts throughout the day, and is worst in the evening), but I'm noticing something increasingly strange.... [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 1:51 PM PST - 29 comments

How much can I drink before cirrhosis sets in? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 1:51 PM PST - 38 comments

I really need AskMefi's collective wisdom on this one. How do I go about collecting a debt from a (so-called) friend of the family? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 1:50 PM PST - 28 comments

Is there a game out that is more realistic than Half-Life 2: Lost Coast?
posted by pwally at 1:30 PM PST - 29 comments

I purchased a navy surplus coat, and it came with epaulets. I've been wearing them sometimes, and strangers jokingly call me "captain" on the street. I'd like to know what rank these epaulets truly are. [more inside]
posted by Mozai at 1:25 PM PST - 6 comments

What gift to put under a far-away-tree for a one-year-old boy? [more inside]
posted by t0astie at 1:15 PM PST - 14 comments

I played this IQ test online a few days ago here: http://www.iqtest.dk/main.swf and didn't do too badly. However, the last question (no. 39) seems completely impossible. I worked out by elimination which answer must be the right one but I still can't figure out why it's right. Are there any genuises out there who can put me out of my misery please?
posted by leibniz at 12:57 PM PST - 43 comments

I'm looking for an ACTUAL book-of-the-month club, for children younger than ten, which serves the UK.... [more inside]
posted by BigLankyBastard at 12:52 PM PST - 3 comments

If I've suffered a mild concussion, will excessive use of reasoning and logic harm the regenerative process going on in my brain? [more inside]
posted by kuatto at 12:44 PM PST - 29 comments

I've been sick a lot in the last two years. And not just cold sick, I've had pneumonia and bronchitis at least 4 times a year. It seems to be triggered by physical work. [more inside]
posted by joaniemcchicken at 12:41 PM PST - 18 comments

OK music geeks. I was having lunch the other day and this song came over the speakers. I knew that I'd heard it before, but I didn't know who sang it. Sorry about the lousy recording quality, but it was loud in Chipotle and the recorder on my phone is crappy. Anyway, if you can make it out and identify this song for me, that would be great... because it's stuck in my head! Click here to listen.
posted by lunarboy at 12:39 PM PST - 21 comments

How do I get a Playlist off my iPod and into iTunes? I know how to get music on and off my iPod, but how can I transfer just the Playlist not the music files? [more inside]
posted by FreezBoy at 12:37 PM PST - 9 comments

Is there a way to combine two broadband internet connections? For the time being, I have two ISPs, one cable and the other DSL. They both have their own modems. If possible, I'd like to use both at once and double my throughput.
posted by iconjack at 12:21 PM PST - 15 comments

My cat uses vertical clawing and pitiful yowling to get attention when we're going to bed or waking up. How to make him stop? [more inside]
posted by junkbox at 12:18 PM PST - 13 comments

Incontinence filter: My father, while more or less OK, has some health problems that have affected him mentally and physically. My Mom and I can deal with this, but what's difficult is that he's got some control issues with his bodily functions - it's very hard for him to travel, and sometimes even to go out to dinner. We need to find a solution. [more inside]
posted by aladfar at 12:18 PM PST - 12 comments

What's the best kind of electric razor? The kind with three shaving circles or the kind that is long and wide? [more inside]
posted by NoMich at 11:45 AM PST - 19 comments

For a friend: "My boyfriend and I work for the same company. After a couple of years, we are becoming very serious. I work in human resources. He works elsewhere in the building. As part of building our total trust in each other, he told me that he was once arrested for a non-violent, non-drug crime and jailed for a few days. Do I report him?" [more inside]
posted by Mo Nickels at 11:44 AM PST - 253 comments

Back-to-schoolfilter: Is there a college that offers a BA in Information Design (or related degree) on-line? [more inside]
posted by quibx at 11:41 AM PST - 3 comments

My current project at work requires a form for users to upload their resume's to the client. I got the upload part working, now how can I let the client now each time something is uploaded via email or some other method? [more inside]
posted by icespide at 11:37 AM PST - 5 comments

I need a gift for someone who suffers from Celiac (can't eat wheat gluten). [more inside]
posted by Carbolic at 11:31 AM PST - 17 comments

OldLiquorFilter: Help me find a decent bottle of something 23 years old and containing alcohol. [more inside]
posted by kalimac at 11:03 AM PST - 19 comments

Is it possible, without custom scripting, to take the contents of a blogger blog and import the links into del.icio.us and auto-tag them? Sheep is a bookmarklet that has auto-tagging, but I'd rather not individually click through five years of posts on multiple blogs to do this. [more inside]
posted by craniac at 10:52 AM PST - 2 comments

Help me! I'm looking for a pair of Ektelon men's racquetball shoes, model name "NFS Game", model number 8E015, size 9. I need a retailer that is in Montreal (best), is in Canada (good) or will ship to a Canadian address (ok). [more inside]
posted by cm at 10:51 AM PST - 0 comments

What's an easy way to append to a text file in Windows XP, like Quicksilver does in OS X? I know about the solution for ActiveWords, but I'd rather not shell out for what seems like basic functionality.
posted by monju_bosatsu at 10:39 AM PST - 11 comments

Day laborers. You know, the guys hanging around Home Depot (or Chavez Street in San Francisco) waiting for work. What's the protocol for hiring them for a day? What's the going rate? There's got to be a lunch break, but they don't seem to be carring lunch. Besides being paid in cash, what else is expected? If your Spanish is muy malo like mine, what do I need to know? How do I choose? Does anyone here have any experience in hiring a day laborer?
posted by kk at 10:37 AM PST - 25 comments

I'm having trouble remembering a playwright I read about long ago. IIRC, this playwright is considered an heir to the Brechtian tradition, and he accordingly hated using professional actors with practiced mannerisms. In order to achieve verfremdungseffekt when directing, he would sometimes cast high schoolers with no previous acting expreience. I think it might be Edward Bond, but I'm not sure. Any ideas? I'm pretty sure that he's British.
posted by painquale at 10:35 AM PST - 3 comments

What matters most to you when selecting a place to live? [more inside]
posted by stormygrey at 10:26 AM PST - 32 comments

I need to buy a recorder and microphone(s) to record an oral history. [more inside]
posted by Coffeemate at 9:56 AM PST - 4 comments

Help me order a magazine subscription for a pre-teen girl. I know she reads and enjoys the "bubblegum" teen magazines her mother buys for her occasionally, but I think they're mindless crap. [more inside]
posted by cosmicbandito at 9:38 AM PST - 37 comments

There was a rumor going around back when I was a kid back in the 1950s than masturbation was a venial sin in Indiana and a mortal sin in Illinois (or visa versa.) Is/Was this true?
posted by Raybun at 9:24 AM PST - 8 comments

Is there a calendar program that will automatically remind me to do things on a certain date every month? Like, you know, pay my (ahem) credit card bills... [more inside]
posted by MrZero at 8:25 AM PST - 24 comments

What the heck was this random thing Filter: In the early 80's there was a popular children's toy called the Fisher Price Magic Show. (Here's a picture.) The kit included a magician's wand with a silk flower that would pop out of one end... [more inside]
posted by peppermint22 at 8:09 AM PST - 22 comments

How do you communicate with non-english speakers when playing sports or gaming? [more inside]
posted by soma lkzx at 8:07 AM PST - 8 comments

What to buy a 16-y-o girl for X-mas? [more inside]
posted by archimago at 6:43 AM PST - 32 comments

How difficult is it to switch from MS Access programming to Delphi? [more inside]
posted by elgilito at 6:40 AM PST - 17 comments

My government produces a monthly breakdown of the RPI - I'd like to find other countries that provide the same level of information. [more inside]
posted by Chunder at 6:38 AM PST - 3 comments

I want to give my 9 year old nephew a Playstation 2 game. Any suggestions? Preferably one he could play with his 13 year old sister.
posted by einarorn at 6:23 AM PST - 28 comments

A few questions about our Pro-Tools setup. [more inside]
posted by jon_kill at 5:33 AM PST - 7 comments

I suspect I've left this too late but I'm looking to buy a jazz cd for my father for Christmas. [more inside]
posted by ceri richard at 5:02 AM PST - 33 comments

What are important dates and events in the development of international mass media? I have this list so far, but any MeFites that have an interest in this area, please contribute! I have a specific interest in the development of media in the developing world.
posted by k8t at 4:34 AM PST - 5 comments

Xooma Multi-Level Marketing : Should my dad stay away? [more inside]
posted by mikeanegus at 4:15 AM PST - 22 comments

I need some software that advises me to take a screen break [more inside]
posted by ajbattrick at 3:58 AM PST - 10 comments

What to be? A teacher or a lawyer? [more inside]
posted by youcancallmeal at 12:47 AM PST - 33 comments

What's a cheap and reasonably quick way to get from Vancouver to Nova Scotia (and back)? Are there any? [more inside]
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 12:45 AM PST - 18 comments

I'm trying to capture some footage into Final Cut Pro 5, and it ain't working. In the words of a certain fly/human, "Help meeeee!" [more inside]
posted by brundlefly at 12:14 AM PST - 3 comments

How many browsers really have javascript disabled? I want to implement a stats program on a client's site that uses javascript to collect stats, but don't want to exclude a big chunk of people [more inside]
posted by menace303 at 12:07 AM PST - 12 comments

My roommate and I are subletting an apartment. How can we steal the lease from the leaseholder? [more inside]
posted by randomstriker at 11:02 PM PST - 31 comments

I need to find a lengthy list of English-language personality traits. Allport and Odbert's 1936 list would be awesome, and a searchable text version (meaning, not a scanned book) would be even better. [more inside]
posted by electric_counterpoint at 10:56 PM PST - 6 comments

I've received a lot of 32 oz. Nalgene brand bottles, 10 to be exact. I want to use them and decorate them as gifts. Before decorating, I want to remove the graphics from the bottles, how can I do it without scuffing the bottles too much and without compromising the bottles structure? [more inside]
posted by ibechase at 10:53 PM PST - 7 comments

Is "Reverend" Peter Popoff's Miracle Spring Water and/or Money legal? [more inside]
posted by The Jesse Helms at 9:50 PM PST - 4 comments

I have a blender that I've used for several months with no real problems. I tried making cookies today and found a setting called "Mix" which I set it too and the blender started mixing the ingredients into cookie dough. However, a few minutes into it, smoke came out of the bottom and it smelt like burnt electronics, although everything seemed fine otherwise. My roommate swears he's had hand mixers smell like that. What's the deal? Are mixers supposed to smoke?
posted by lpctstr; at 8:25 PM PST - 25 comments

Please explain to me about hugging and social touching in human relationships. [more inside]
posted by xo at 7:23 PM PST - 33 comments

How do I use these Indian food condiments? [more inside]
posted by Brian James at 6:54 PM PST - 15 comments

I started listening to Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian and am seeking books and documentaries that will explain all of the naval terms and jargon. [more inside]
posted by meta87 at 6:47 PM PST - 16 comments

There are two things on the internet that I would like to find again, both art pages related to old video games. [more inside]
posted by Lirp at 6:33 PM PST - 7 comments

How can my step-mom tell if a standard issue Bicylce playing card is a face card or not by looking at only the back of the card? [more inside]
posted by TheAnswer at 6:28 PM PST - 37 comments

What is the easiest way, on OS X, to automatically crop folders of digital photos to a square? [more inside]
posted by joshgray at 5:42 PM PST - 12 comments

I want to find other sites like Metafilter that focus solely on creativity rather than political issues or current affairs. [more inside]
posted by oxala at 5:36 PM PST - 19 comments

I think I froze my iPod to death. Is there anything I can do to revive it? [more inside]
posted by mathowie at 4:50 PM PST - 12 comments

I have one of these sinks and can't get it clean! [more inside]
posted by loosemouth at 4:31 PM PST - 9 comments

Calling *NIX shell wizards. [more inside]
posted by ori at 4:04 PM PST - 33 comments

Where can i find an Automated Online Hebrew to English Translator ?
posted by sgt.serenity at 4:03 PM PST - 4 comments

How can I make this? I want to make small - 1" x 3" or so - labels that are rigid, weatherproof, and can be made one at a time. Needs to be low-tech, low investment, but decent looking. For instance, is there a simple way to etch / transfer computer-generated text on to a piece of metal or plastic? If I can't do this on my own, who can do it for me cheaply?
posted by Jackson at 4:02 PM PST - 14 comments

My brother wants to take a photograph of a flower burning from fairly close up. But so far he's having problems finding the right household product to make it burn "right" [more inside]
posted by cgfoz at 3:29 PM PST - 25 comments

Mefiswap filter: I'm putting the finishing touches on my Mefiswap cd (Hey swapset gray!) and I've got a couple of general questions: [more inside]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 3:23 PM PST - 15 comments

Certain palm trees in the San Francisco area tend to have their palms tied upwards for a while after they're replanted in an urban setting (they're full grown already). I think this has to do with encouraging the roots to grow downward rather than sideways (and disturbing the concrete around them) by not allowing the palms to drip water in a wider circle around the base of the tree but I can't find any information to corroborate this theory. Can anyone with tree-fu help me out with a link or two?
posted by authenticgeek at 3:03 PM PST - 3 comments

Where can Peace Corps volunteers go to find funding for projects that they want to carrying out? Volunteers aren't given very many resources to locate funding to initiate projects. Where can a volunteer go to find organizations or funding sources?
posted by brokekid at 1:42 PM PST - 5 comments

I really like the Danielson Famile. Any suggestions of other artists that would appeal to me? [more inside]
posted by Falconetti at 1:27 PM PST - 28 comments

I want to maximize endorphins and minimize injury [more inside]
posted by yorick at 1:20 PM PST - 19 comments

Does anyone have any information on O. Dorsey, inventor of the door knob (and doorstop)? [more inside]
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 12:29 PM PST - 6 comments

Best Sci-Fi short story anthology? [more inside]
posted by skwm at 11:58 AM PST - 20 comments

Is it possible to split up and rebind a very large book into three or four smaller books? (Yes, I know this was asked a year and a half ago, but my question is a little different.) [more inside]
posted by Ian A.T. at 11:42 AM PST - 11 comments

CowboyPoetryFilter: identify a poem whose every verse ended in the word buckaroo. [more inside]
posted by Rash at 11:13 AM PST - 4 comments

I have been looking for an online version of the user manual for the Roland MKB-1000 MIDI controller without any luck. Does any Mefite by any chance have a PDF or whatnot of said manual laying around?
posted by fondle at 11:03 AM PST - 4 comments

In a recent interview on Sky TV, a Greenpeace campaigner cited a UK town (or district) effectively unplugging itself from the national grid power distribution system, using local power generation, and reducing its power consumption by 75% (if I recall). Do you know where he was talking about?
posted by nthdegx at 9:39 AM PST - 5 comments

What is the best way to get superglue off of a countertop? [more inside]
posted by slim at 9:38 AM PST - 17 comments

What resources do I have or what can I do when one of my tenants changes the locks on me on their unit?
posted by sandrapbrady at 8:10 AM PST - 18 comments

Buying my first set of Flatware / Dinnerware (and chopsticks). Advice? Recommendations? [more inside]
posted by Manhasset at 7:56 AM PST - 18 comments

Basic statistics: given P possible outcomes, how many different P's are chosen on average when N choices are made? [more inside]
posted by DaShiv at 2:06 AM PST - 23 comments

Third Republic French caricature: I'm trying to figure out four lithographs by André Gill. [more inside]
posted by obliquicity at 1:47 AM PST - 11 comments

Help me find a video of any of the the Nicholas Cage SNL skits where he plays "Tiny Elvis". I've done the quick Google and Yahoo video searches and only came up with the transcript. thanks in advance "Hey, man.. look at that salt shaker, man. That is huge!"
posted by jimmereeno at 1:04 AM PST - 12 comments

In Nina Simone's "Love Me or Leave Me" she plays a piano solo that incorporates a bit baroque* classical piano. Makes sense, since she was trained as a classical pianist, and the effect is wonderful. Please recommend some other songs or artists that use this kind of jazz/baroque combo. * Disclaimer: I'm not a classical music expert, so I may have the terminology wrong. I welcome your corrections.
posted by Typographica at 11:08 PM PST - 24 comments

My old apartment had extremely leaky single-pane windows, so in the winter my roommate and I would always cover them with tightly sealed heat-shrink plastic film. Why would the plastic nearly always be bulging inward? [more inside]
posted by Galvatron at 10:48 PM PST - 18 comments

I live in an apartment overseas in China. If any of you have been over here you know how asthetically unpleasing apartments here are: no carpet, dirty white walls, wood furniture with no padding. I'm adjusting to most things fine, but the lighting in my rooms is driving my crazy. Each room is equipped with a long (a little over a meter) white fluorescent bulb. Obviously, I can just not use it at all and just use lamps and such, but I'd rather not buy a bunch of lamps since I'll live here for less than a year. What suggestions do ya'll have for making the lighting nicer on the eyes and more "homey" feeling? [more inside]
posted by riverjack at 10:42 PM PST - 32 comments

In a picture of me in first grade, I have loosely-curly red hair and freckles. Now, in my twenties, I have dark brown, medium-curly hair and a mostly-clear complexion. I can grow quite the fierce afro if I want to (and I have), but my hair laid down and flowed when I was a kid. I don't remember when the change happened (it was probably gradual, I guess), but I do remember that I had brown hair already when I was 12. Is this common? Or am I a freak? Is there a scientific explanation? My mom was a fair freckled redhead with and my dad had black tight-curly (nappy) hair and a dark (but not black) complexion. My hair is still really soft, just a different, darker color and with somewhat tighter curls. Has your hair changed as dramatically as mine since childhood?
posted by evariste at 9:52 PM PST - 41 comments

Do car remote entry clickers have batteries, or are they passively activated by a field generated by the car? [more inside]
posted by qslack at 8:16 PM PST - 11 comments

What is the best way to go about cleaning a very dirty pasta maker? [more inside]
posted by teem at 7:42 PM PST - 10 comments

A friend of mine insists that he's seen what he refers to as a "bullet carafe." Evidently it's a glass carafe with a bullet embedded in the side within a raised circle of glass. Nobody seems to believe him, though a few people have asserted that they think such a thing might possibly exist. [more inside]
posted by mph at 7:34 PM PST - 11 comments

Ahh, Christmas time. MeFites are a bunch of blasphemous heathens, so I'm hoping you can suggest some interesting pagan Christmas ornaments. Also interested in cool pagan wall hangings. [more inside]
posted by agropyron at 7:17 PM PST - 22 comments

Can I use my G4 iMac (the one that has a round base and a swivelly flat monitor) as a monitor/second hard drive for a new mac mini? [more inside]
posted by AgentRocket at 7:00 PM PST - 10 comments

Trying to think of the name of a PS2 game, and looking for another in Australia... [more inside]
posted by tomble at 6:33 PM PST - 8 comments

How do you respond when you're with people and they complain about their weight? [more inside]
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 5:50 PM PST - 72 comments

A website featuring animal portraits in a human style... [more inside]
posted by fire&wings at 5:33 PM PST - 5 comments

Why does the turntable inside most microwave ovens switch its direction of rotation when interrupted?
posted by StickyCarpet at 5:29 PM PST - 13 comments

My partner and I are looking into a Burmese cat and were wondering a few things: [more inside]
posted by Rothko at 5:10 PM PST - 8 comments

automatic ligatures on windows? i guess indesign does it, but i'm hoping you know of an openoffice plugin or another solution about the same price as openoffice.
posted by raaka at 3:55 PM PST - 4 comments

This thread inspired my question: does anyone know of a tivo-like app that can alert me when my favorite shows come on? [more inside]
posted by damnjezebel at 3:09 PM PST - 4 comments

RSSFilter: I run a website that promotes independent music [link inside] and has become the authoritative source for concert listings and a variety of other info in my local area... How do I best utilize RSS for our shows list without negating the need to come to my site? Or should I not bother? [more inside]
posted by twiggy at 3:01 PM PST - 10 comments

What is the general rule as to when should I use wet sanding versus dry sanding?
posted by bobbeene at 1:44 PM PST - 3 comments

Can someone buy a doorbell that plays those "chimes" that we hear as the dinner announcement on cruise ships? [more inside]
posted by stst399 at 12:49 PM PST - 2 comments

Gifts for poker players. $25-$50 limit, and 1 week to go. [more details on the flop] [more inside]
posted by i love cheese at 12:46 PM PST - 18 comments

Two player games. [more inside]
posted by dpx.mfx at 11:50 AM PST - 41 comments

I'd like to get a friend of mine a new Cellphone for Christmas, since the one she has no longer works properly. Is it possible to buy her a phone such that she could just swap her old phone out with the new one, keeping the same account? She has some sort of contract-free account with Cingular under the AT&T wireless brand (more on that inside), and I don't think that her phone uses a SIM card. [more inside]
posted by delmoi at 11:35 AM PST - 18 comments

Will an IDE DVD Burner "just work" with an iMac G5, if put in an external drive enclosure, and plugged in via Firewire or USB 2.0? [more inside]
posted by teece at 11:30 AM PST - 6 comments

Im just starting out in a relationship with a really great girl. Problem is, when we met she was also starting a relationship with another guy. Now shes torn between us. Help me win her over musically. [more inside]
posted by lemonfridge at 11:18 AM PST - 57 comments

HatedJobFilter: How do you deal with toughing out a job you hate for a couple of months? [more inside]
posted by toftflin at 11:09 AM PST - 19 comments

As a computer geek, I've wasted a lot of time contemplating how to build a system that would let me access, preserve, and share my information without being dependent on any particular computer. What are your thoughts? [more inside]
posted by shivohum at 10:31 AM PST - 21 comments

phpBB or SMF for a new forum? Or something else? [more inside]
posted by chef_boyardee at 10:13 AM PST - 13 comments

I'm looking for a good restaurant to take a date to in Austin. Suggestions?
posted by Sangermaine at 10:03 AM PST - 15 comments

How come Google ignores my sites I try to submit to it? [more inside]
posted by zek at 9:33 AM PST - 10 comments

How can someone who's been biting their nails for 20 years stop?
posted by Ekim Neems at 9:05 AM PST - 23 comments

A friend of mine told me about a site that will give you $50.00 on PartyPoker.com just for registering for a certain online poker forum. (mi) This is not advertising, I swear. [more inside]
posted by thatweirdguy2 at 8:40 AM PST - 6 comments

Does anyone know of a program that will take a DVD-compatible MPEG2 file, and generate a very simple DVD VIDEO_TS folder - ie, no menu, just the file in a format that a DVD player can recognize [more inside]
posted by ascullion at 6:42 AM PST - 14 comments

Any of you stopped smoking (or not) after acupuncture or laser therapy? [more inside]
posted by nj_subgenius at 5:27 AM PST - 16 comments

I have an idea for a website that will show tv listings, but editable by anyone wiki-style. Would such reproduction of TV listings be legal? [more inside]
posted by slater at 3:47 AM PST - 9 comments

Car Question. My speedometer just broke. How worried should I be? [more inside]
posted by oddman at 1:30 AM PST - 23 comments

Did I fry my Palm Tungsten E? I'm currently residing in Nepal, and when I arrived and the battery ran down, I plugged it in without thinking and without using a voltage converter. Is it toast or is perhaps the battery dead? I know that the batteries in Tungsten Es often go quickly. I have a chance to send it back to the US with a friend to get it repaired or the battery replaced, and I want to know if this is worth the time and money. It's not under warranty.
posted by AArtaud at 1:17 AM PST - 5 comments

Why is the Columbus Blue Jackets hockey team often abbreviated as "CBJ"? [more inside]
posted by brad! at 10:40 PM PST - 10 comments

I'm looking for a DVD version of the Marriage of Figaro as performed by the Metropolitan Opera circa 1998/9. [more inside]
posted by mule at 10:03 PM PST - 2 comments

Desperately Wanted: a Windows mp3 file splitter designed for usability, not mere functionality. I'm looking for particular features: [more inside]
posted by Moistener at 7:31 PM PST - 7 comments

My ex wants me to come over and find out where we're at in our relationship. We were in a long distance relationship that ended a few months ago when I was intimate with another man (no sex, just so you know, but enough to make it cheating). When I told him, we swore we still loved eachother, but decided break up so we could have a chance to grow, and start again when we lived in the same city (likely spring '06). Since then I've found clarity, come to terms with the nearly unbearable guilt and done my best to change the part of me that went wrong. Come to find out he's been busy....very busy...with many women where he lives. I made a mistake, I know that....so it confounds me that he says he loves me but turns around and does all that stuff with all those girls? I'm very in love with this man, and I want to believe in him so badly, but I can't understand how he can hold such a double standard. Is it just too much to ask of a 24 year old, to actually live the lifestyle he expects of his partner? Is it a Man thing, that you have to get action? And, in light of all this, can I believe that he loves me or am I playing the fool.
posted by aquavit at 7:10 PM PST - 66 comments

I want to buy my friend a set of poker chips for Christmas. What should I look for? [more inside]
posted by BigVACub at 6:58 PM PST - 12 comments

Does anyone know of any existing studies, articles, etc. about parents who kill (or even attempt to kill) their children because God told them to? I'm curious about how common this phenomenon is. [more inside]
posted by dlugoczaj at 6:47 PM PST - 15 comments

Where can I find a world or US map where the size of each country/state reflects its population? [more inside]
posted by hermitosis at 6:39 PM PST - 5 comments

Miss Mefi Manners: What's the proper way to respond to a relative who has sent you a hoax email? [more inside]
posted by Saucy Intruder at 6:08 PM PST - 27 comments

Techsupportdesperation: Long time listener, first time caller, axmefolk. So, I had the internet. And then I got a router. And now I have no internet, and I'm all out of clues... [more inside]
posted by robself at 5:24 PM PST - 9 comments

Recommendations for composting toilets, please. [more inside]
posted by ottereroticist at 4:30 PM PST - 3 comments

Apparently, our landlord has put some sort of a hex or curse on us. What would your response to this be, if any?
posted by jeb at 2:32 PM PST - 90 comments

Does anyone know where i can find code that will display my stock portfolio on my personal website? [more inside]
posted by hubs at 2:25 PM PST - 8 comments

My electric toothbrushes keep dying... [more inside]
posted by websavvy at 2:12 PM PST - 20 comments

Help me figure out how to extract an XML schema in a .dtd file into lovely XML documentation. [more inside]
posted by dobie at 1:40 PM PST - 2 comments

Hey! Know a good subaru repair shop in Palo Alto? What about the Mission side of SF? [more inside]
posted by metaculpa at 1:05 PM PST - 9 comments

Identify this font from one sketched character; challenge of the year! [more inside]
posted by Optimus Chyme at 11:30 AM PST - 37 comments

A few months back I read about the upcoming release of an FM receiver for iPods - the iFM by Griffin. Soon after that, I read that it was cancelled before even being released. I just received a MacMall catalog in the mail yesterday, and lo and behold - an iFM receiver was listed for sale. I haven't been able to find any reviews of this online. Anyone here have experience with these? [more inside]
posted by jeff-o-matic at 11:23 AM PST - 19 comments

Our (rented) house seems to have been built without insulation. Tips on keeping the house as warm as possible this winter? [more inside]
posted by Wolfie at 11:03 AM PST - 31 comments

How to move house in two weeks or less! [more inside]
posted by Space Kitty at 11:01 AM PST - 28 comments

Help me preserve and share my grandmother's final writings. [more inside]
posted by aebaxter at 11:00 AM PST - 9 comments

I want to do ear-training while driving to and from work. Several $20+ books come with CD's but I am just positive there is a free CD image somewhere I can make my own with. Anyone? [more inside]
posted by jester69 at 10:56 AM PST - 10 comments

Ye Olde Holiday Work Party. [more inside]
posted by icetaco at 10:49 AM PST - 12 comments

Have darkroom equipment (black and white enlarger etc.) - need suggestions where to donate, sell or dump. I'm in Jersey City beside Manhattan. [more inside]
posted by johoney at 10:18 AM PST - 21 comments

I need a new mobile phone on the Verizon network. What do you recommend? [more inside]
posted by FlamingBore at 10:08 AM PST - 15 comments

New York DMV Filter: A friend (really) let her car insurance lapse twice in the last three years, the second time you allow the insurance to lapse you must hand in your plates for a set amount of time (in her case a month)... [more inside]
posted by Divine_Wino at 9:57 AM PST - 11 comments

SQL_Filter: I have two tables. They both share a common ID field, but one of the tables as multiple rows of that ID (it's a history table that contains revisions). I want only 1 row to be returned when I join the tables... [more inside]
posted by apark at 9:44 AM PST - 21 comments

MedicalFilter: Don't worry, this isn't about real life. I'm writing a novel in which a character receives a long knife gash (but not too deep) along the side of one calf. What I need to know is, how long would she need to keep weight off of it? The story assumes she'll spend some time on crutches, but I want to keep that time to a minimum before I move her to a cane. I'm flexible about which leg... if it's her right leg, would she be able to drive a car; if her left leg, would she be able to drive a standard transmission?
posted by lhauser at 9:34 AM PST - 8 comments

Non-swingers and non-polyamorous people: Do swingers and polyamorous people creep you out? [more inside]
posted by pornucopia at 8:39 AM PST - 123 comments

Six months ago I got a pomeranian puppy, and I absolutely love her. Should I get a second puppy to share the love? [more inside]
posted by ackeber at 8:35 AM PST - 15 comments

How far do I have to go to make my website accessible? [more inside]
posted by Biblio at 8:24 AM PST - 30 comments

What is the "best" Beatles biography in publication? Definition of "best" inside. [more inside]
posted by spicynuts at 7:49 AM PST - 22 comments

.pdf printing: How can one print only a selection of pages a pdf document without printing the entire document?
posted by dazed_one at 7:17 AM PST - 12 comments

I was in Mexico City and went to Lipstick, a cute loungy gay bar and they played this song that I cannot for the life of me find. It had a female singer, and was a kinda dance/pop/gay song, thought dont remember if it was in english or not, but the chorus was this catchy whistling tune that everyone in the bar knew as they imitated the whistling in a funny/cute/innocent way. Anyone know what Im talking about?
posted by _zed_ at 7:05 AM PST - 6 comments

How can I manage my databases that are exploding in size? Can I run SQL Server on my laptop? [more inside]
posted by benjh at 7:04 AM PST - 9 comments

GettingaDogFilter: How much time does it take for an adopted dog need to bond with its owner? I am in a long distance relationship and generally leave town once a month to visit the SO, should I hold off on getting a dog until that situation is rectified and I am not travelling nearly as much? [more inside]
posted by buddha9090 at 5:59 AM PST - 17 comments

What's the most reliable place to register a new domain? Register.com seems expensive, but on the up and up.
posted by jgballard at 5:58 AM PST - 52 comments

Anyone have any suggestions for Christmas gifts for a really, really hard to buy for guy? [more inside]
posted by Richat at 5:44 AM PST - 17 comments

Who owns my mp3s when I die?
posted by Neale at 4:26 AM PST - 27 comments

Looking for a Blue Swatch Bisoux "Love Explosion" Ring - Help me make a Christmas miracle. [more inside]
posted by BigBrownBear at 1:40 AM PST - 8 comments

Introvert. Fear of public speaking. Marketing degree. Successful career in sales possible? [more inside]
posted by saucy at 1:02 AM PST - 22 comments

ArtFilter: Help me find a painting... [more inside]
posted by provolot at 12:33 AM PST - 9 comments

how do I make my blog be invisible to search engines? [more inside]
posted by aussicht at 11:43 PM PST - 20 comments

UnixFilter: How can I force a shell or other execution environment to wait for a process to finish, instead of allowing normal behavior for apps which like to fork / go into the background? [more inside]
posted by cyrusdogstar at 11:01 PM PST - 15 comments

Druglord the pc game.... has anybody written it for any other platforms? can i get it for the palm os or mac os x? have tried googling to no avail, though have seen mention of a longwinded method of getting it running for os x. anyone interested in porting to other platforms?!!
posted by spyke23 at 10:59 PM PST - 8 comments

There are several inches of snow on the ground. My keys are locked inside my 1998 Chrysler Cirrus. The engine is running. No help will arrive for three hours. Any suggestions? [more inside]
posted by ludwig_van at 10:30 PM PST - 50 comments

If I want to make donations in peoples' names without them being subjected to an onslaught of requests for more $ from the organizations I choose, where do I turn? [more inside]
posted by bloggerwench at 10:21 PM PST - 5 comments

Beside myself filter: My 22 year old sister is close to hitting rock bottom, and she is heading there fast. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 10:17 PM PST - 44 comments

AppleScript: How do I tell iTunes to search my Library for something? [more inside]
posted by nickerbocker at 10:06 PM PST - 8 comments

How can I do "track changes" stuff without using Microsoft Word? [more inside]
posted by nowonmai at 9:40 PM PST - 11 comments

Anyone have tips on effective and efficient dog hair control? [more inside]
posted by gnash at 8:51 PM PST - 19 comments

InDesign workflow? Help me, print designers! I'm using InDesign for the first time and need to collaborate with several clients making edits to this one big text file while I work on the design.... [more inside]
posted by eileen at 6:36 PM PST - 8 comments

SuperheroNameFilter: Name a baby girl after a comic book superhero... [more inside]
posted by frogan at 5:57 PM PST - 78 comments

I've got a bunch of spyware/adware. It got on to my computer all in one go, though I'm not sure how, and now I can't completely get rid of it. Worse, I don't even know exactly what it is. [more inside]
posted by borkingchikapa at 5:49 PM PST - 20 comments

SONGFILTER: need people who can read musical notes to help me find the name of this opera-esque song! [more inside]
posted by beammeup4 at 5:45 PM PST - 6 comments

What is wrong with my chocolate chip cookies? I make the recipe off the back of the chocolate chip bag, or from different cookbooks... it doesn't matter. Every time, they spread out too much and get too thin. It isn't pretty. They taste sort of OK, but what might I be missing?
posted by voidcontext at 5:25 PM PST - 41 comments

How do I get over my shame at not staying in touch? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 5:00 PM PST - 21 comments

I'm headed to Karlsbad Germany next week, which is near Karlsruhe. I'll be there for a week on business, and am anticipating having most of the weekend free. Any suggestions as to what to do? [more inside]
posted by gregariousrecluse at 4:26 PM PST - 9 comments

I have lots of little bumps of varying sizes on the inside of my lips. Maybe "lips" isn't the 100% correct term -- but they're scattered throughout the area between my lips (where lipstick goes) and my gums. Both top and bottom of my mouth. What are they? The larger ones appear whitish (they aren't raised bumps -- they're under my pink mouth flesh). Is it cancer? How long do I have, Doc? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:21 PM PST - 29 comments

Does anyone know the name of the film that this picture is from? [more inside]
posted by adoran2 at 3:53 PM PST - 11 comments

Amazon-fu. How do I get Amazon, a) to show e.g. 100 hits per page; b) show just author/title and not the other crap? [more inside]
posted by TheRaven at 3:27 PM PST - 9 comments

name this weird social phenomenon. google proof. can involve chewing gum. [more inside]
posted by snailer at 2:31 PM PST - 27 comments

Firefox 1.5: I want to set the number of copies in the Firefox 1.5 Print Dialog box once and for all for all the diffrent printing jobs I need. I was able to do this in 1.0x, can I get 1.5 to function in the same way? [more inside]
posted by jchgf at 1:42 PM PST - 2 comments

Seeking violin and piano duets, preferably old recordings. [more inside]
posted by nylon at 1:30 PM PST - 6 comments

I'm a sysadmin, and I've been asked to check the browsing habits of a particular employee. We don't use a proxy, but all traffic is routed through a PIX firewall. What's the best way/software to do this? [more inside]
posted by stovenator at 1:10 PM PST - 23 comments

While on a factfinding mission to a toy store, my 5 year old son had to be dragged away from the demo slot cars. Does anybody have any recommendations on purchasing a track for a young child? I don't want him (or me) to be frustrated with constantly having to put the car back on the track.
posted by donpardo at 12:43 PM PST - 14 comments

Can a strut fail such that it doesn't move? My 96 Grand Prix has a rear wheel of which the suspension is a bit squashed in and stuck. It looks as though there is a bit of weight in the trunk, but of course there isn't. It won't compress when I push on the fender, nor will it extend when I jack up the car. Has anyone heard of this before? Can I do anything other than have new struts put in?
posted by kc0dxh at 12:30 PM PST - 7 comments

How do I display an online .PDF's URL when printing it? [more inside]
posted by chefscotticus at 12:22 PM PST - 2 comments

Anyone remember a great interactive "naming" site, run in flash I think, where you could see how popular or not a name was over a period of time (even by country I think)? I have searched, I promise - but I just can't find it!
posted by dash_slot- at 12:18 PM PST - 9 comments

What happened to www.itunes.com and the podcasting XML DTD that used to be hosted there? [more inside]
posted by intermod at 11:59 AM PST - 8 comments

I need to get from Boston, MA, to Denver, CO, as fast as possible. How do I do that? [more inside]
posted by koeselitz at 11:46 AM PST - 14 comments

Cheaply moving instruments, a PA, and an Amplifier from DC to PA. [more inside]
posted by The White Hat at 11:41 AM PST - 3 comments

Best spam-fighting solutions for WordPress? [more inside]
posted by Robot Johnny at 11:35 AM PST - 17 comments

I saved a puppy from certain death. Now I need help getting home for the holidays. Is it possible and cost-effective to travel from Baltimore, MD to Kalamazoo, MI using only public transportation? [more inside]
posted by schroedinger at 11:33 AM PST - 23 comments

Will applying for a new TN Visa (I-94) cause any problems with if currently filing for a green card? [more inside]
posted by neilkod at 11:15 AM PST - 4 comments

So. I quit my job. What do I tell people? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 11:12 AM PST - 20 comments

does anyone have a specific salon recommendation in the washmetro area for a bikini (brazilian) wax. i know we've covered the topic generally a couple of times, but i'm looking for specific salon recommendations in DC or on the MD side. places to avoid would be useful as well. thanks!
posted by anonymous at 11:11 AM PST - 5 comments

Not even kidding: What are some good ways to avoid being tailed after a downtown meeting with people I don't want to follow me home and find out where I live? Anyone know of good tips for shaking pursuers, either from the movies or real life?
posted by anonymous at 11:11 AM PST - 51 comments

I'm an still-in-the-closet (but perhaps soon to be out) gay man in his early 20s. What are the best ways to meet good-hearted, intelligent, and personable gay men in Boston (or generally), people who are interested in relationships and not just quick hookups?
posted by anonymous at 11:11 AM PST - 17 comments

Is there a good way to do cartoon speech balloons? I sometimes toss together cheap cartoons in an old version of Paintshop Pro. What's the best way of doing this, aside from hacking up something with an ellipse tool? Are there usable clip art samples out there I can import & paste? I'm sure there's a Photoshop plugin for this kind of thing, but I don't have Photoshop.
posted by rolypolyman at 11:11 AM PST - 9 comments

I'm interested in posting a stream of music on my site, say a one-hour loop, much like David Byrne does at http://www.davidbyrne.com/radio/index.php ... question, are there legal issues (given that i won't repeat an artist within the loop)? Also, what's the best way to implement, especially if I want to play the music in the Web browser while people are using the site... i.e. is there a PHP solution, or are the examples of sites that do this in the Web browser? Just interested in any and all resources around this.
posted by cgt at 10:37 AM PST - 8 comments

I need help finding a new IM client, please. [more inside]
posted by omair at 10:33 AM PST - 9 comments

Where do you find your volunteer opportunities? [more inside]
posted by karmaville at 9:58 AM PST - 14 comments

I’ve been chronically underemployed since I graduated from college. At the moment I am at home with my infant son, which will be my primary employment probably for the next 2-3 years. I want to start preparing now to improve my career potential down the line. Right now I’m pursuing creative ambitions, but they aren’t necessarily practical and it seems sensible to keep an eye on the pragmatic. [more inside]
posted by nanojath at 9:45 AM PST - 16 comments

So, I was just offered a job. It's a 12 month contract that will be going perm in the next year. So, first order of business is to find health insurance. Help me find the best option for me. [more inside]
posted by fletchmuy at 9:43 AM PST - 5 comments

Roadconstructionfilter: Why do I see so many highway crews replacing only a 10' by 2' section? [more inside]
posted by notsnot at 9:38 AM PST - 13 comments

Professional journalists having blogs associated with their names - Cost/benefit analysis. [more inside]
posted by poweredbybeard at 9:28 AM PST - 14 comments

Can anyone recommend a challenge-based spam filtering system with good usability? mailblocks.com recently shut down. [more inside]
posted by Nelson at 9:27 AM PST - 16 comments

I am turning to the Meta community for help since I am at a loss on how to answer this question. A good friend of mine has suddenly lost a lot of data from an external drive that he keeps on all the time. He has a Western Digital 320GB drive that stores mostly live recording of the DMB. The drive reads as 298GB total size and 78GB free space, but the only folder on the external is showing that there is only 123GB of data being stored (therefore ~98GB of data is missing). He has searched the drive for the folders but they are not showing up. Any idea of what could have happened to his files? Also, would it be safe to shut down the external (since its always on) and see if that fixes the problem?
posted by Number27 at 9:15 AM PST - 12 comments

I need around 10 years or so of daily temperature forecasts for a few representative US cities.
posted by shothotbot at 9:11 AM PST - 8 comments

So we're throwing a large benefit for a friend diagnosed with Squamous Cell Cancer and could use some suggestions on how to keep it interesting [more inside]
posted by j.p. Hung at 8:59 AM PST - 4 comments

I'd like to improve my english (french is my mother language). [more inside]
posted by vincentm at 8:44 AM PST - 27 comments

WhatToDoInThisTownFilter : single day in London, this very saturday. What to do ? [more inside]
posted by XiBe at 8:34 AM PST - 12 comments

London at the holidays...so much to do, so little time... [more inside]
posted by jeanmari at 8:19 AM PST - 20 comments

Need help drafting Conflict of Interest guidelines for a community radio station. Media folks, law folks, journalistas, can you help? [more inside]
posted by Miko at 7:50 AM PST - 3 comments

How do DVD manufacturers convince DVD player manufacturers to cripple their product by include region restrictions? And why isn't the high cost of region-free DVD players considered a form of price-fixing? [more inside]
posted by tweebiscuit at 7:49 AM PST - 18 comments

Anyone know the term for a book-like box about a particular wood made from that wood? [more inside]
posted by provocateur at 7:47 AM PST - 2 comments

Is there anyway to set an Apple iSight's focus to infinity rather than the default autofocus? [more inside]
posted by terrapin at 7:27 AM PST - 9 comments

What are your favorite original Nintendo NES games? [more inside]
posted by meerkatty at 7:19 AM PST - 76 comments

Problems uploading via FTP in Windows XP (SP2). [more inside]
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 7:04 AM PST - 12 comments

Is there a way I can automatically restrict/deny access to my website from certain regions/locations (states/parts of states), possibly by redirection? [more inside]
posted by sandra_s at 6:18 AM PST - 13 comments

Recommend me good PC gaming websites. [more inside]
posted by uncle harold at 5:02 AM PST - 14 comments

Reggie Bush highlight tape riff? [more inside]
posted by Yelling At Nothing at 3:53 AM PST - 2 comments

Where is a cheap supplement store in Dublin? [more inside]
posted by antifuse at 2:55 AM PST - 6 comments

Transfering money from the UK to the USA: When? [more inside]
posted by normy at 2:29 AM PST - 15 comments

What's the story with rubber chickens? Why are they funny? Where do they come from? What are their origins in comedy?
posted by sam and rufus at 1:19 AM PST - 16 comments

What's a good set of darts for the recreational player, and where can I buy them (reasonably) cheap? [more inside]
posted by bargex at 12:29 AM PST - 5 comments

1980-ish Top 40 version of "Pop Goes the Weasel" -- who was it by? [more inside]
posted by Aknaton at 10:37 PM PST - 12 comments

I want to be able to scan pages from books whilst I am researching in the library, so I am looking for a flatbed scanner that is thin, lightweight, USB/Firewire powered, good with OCR software and reasonably fast. Any recommendations or is this too much too ask?
posted by xoe26 at 9:49 PM PST - 12 comments

How and where to buy a jewelry for my girlfriend? [more inside]
posted by curiousleo at 8:59 PM PST - 43 comments

Does anyone else get multiple items shipped by Amazon? Its happened twice now in only ten orders. Two shipments with duplicate books, CD's DVD's. Odd. What?
posted by DickStock at 8:44 PM PST - 20 comments

Looking for a photographer specializing in desert photos in Arizona. [more inside]
posted by kdern at 8:41 PM PST - 9 comments

Do such shoes exist? I'm planning a new look, and I'd love any tips on where to find black mens shoes that, unlike running shoes or sneakers, look vaguely like (informal) dress shoes, but are in fact kickass running/climbing/jumping shoes in disguise. [more inside]
posted by -harlequin- at 8:37 PM PST - 20 comments

Transplanting Dell Dimension 8200 to new case. Need new motherboard. I'm lost in options! [more inside]
posted by figment at 8:37 PM PST - 10 comments

I find the Bush Jaw Thing incredibly creepy. What the hell is behind it, and has he always done it? [more inside]
posted by interrobang at 8:19 PM PST - 32 comments

iTunes Smart Playlists: how do I see what I've been listening to a lot recently? [more inside]
posted by heeeraldo at 8:12 PM PST - 10 comments

Dreamweaver 8 (on OS X 10.3.9) seems to have forgotten how to authenticate via SFTP, and at the worst possible time. Help! [more inside]
posted by Acetylene at 8:07 PM PST - 12 comments

I have a large .rar file--just over 3 gigs--that I want to unpack to a drive on my computer. The source drive and the destination drive both have plenty of room, at least 15 gigs each, but my C drive has just under 3 gigs. When I try to unpack, say from drive E to drive D, the C drive becomes full(!), and I have to cancel. I can't really free up any space on my C drive, so how can I unpack this thing? Is there any way that I can "bypass" the unpacked files being routed through the C drive?
posted by zardoz at 7:50 PM PST - 10 comments

We're thinking of buying my dad a Ham Radio for Christmas. I know nothing about them and don't know where to even start. Help! [more inside]
posted by fionab at 7:21 PM PST - 9 comments

What is going on with David Lynch? [more inside]
posted by MetaMonkey at 7:13 PM PST - 23 comments

My bank (Wells Fargo) is discontinuing its account aggregation service. I'm looking for recommendations for a replacement. [more inside]
posted by nathan_teske at 7:06 PM PST - 4 comments

Last minute anniversary plans in San Francisco. Help! [more inside]
posted by JackarypQQ at 6:34 PM PST - 10 comments

How can I help a child who isn’t mine? [more inside]
posted by justonegirl at 6:17 PM PST - 42 comments

I want to learn Tai-Chi or Yoga in Los Angeles. Where's a good place to do that? (For those outside of L.A., what are good things to look for when finding a place to start Yoga or Tai Chi? How often should one go when starting out? What else should I know?) [more inside]
posted by anonymoose at 6:17 PM PST - 9 comments

In the original 1978 Superman movie Lex Luther plans to split apart the San Andreas fault-line using Nuclear armaments - the resulting explosion destined to send the entire Californian coastline and its inhabitants to murky ocean depths.

How much explosive force would be needed to cause any such kind of earthquake? And, using the San Andreas fault as a model, could Lex Luther's diabolic plan have any degree of success? [more inside]
posted by 0bvious at 5:23 PM PST - 19 comments

As suggested here: What is "dating", and how does it work? [more inside]
posted by Lotto at 5:22 PM PST - 48 comments

We need a new (used) vehicle, but can't decide what we're seeking...I'd like to hear some more opinions from disinterested parties. [more inside]
posted by Kickstart70 at 5:06 PM PST - 15 comments

Attn Jersey Shore beach bums -- can't remember the name of an artist in Cape May, NJ in the Washington Mall area. His "paintings" are specially processed digital photos. I can't remember the name of the process or the artist. Anyone happen to know?
posted by mmangano at 4:55 PM PST - 1 comments

I had to buy an air compressor to blow out some outside plumbing for the winter. What are some other fun/useful things I can do with it? Already know about: airbrush painting, snowmaking, inflating tires. Others?
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 4:51 PM PST - 18 comments

What's a reasonable price to pay to replace a speed sensor in a 1995 Honda Odyssey van?
posted by wsg at 4:45 PM PST - 6 comments

DevFilter: For those of you who have started large-scale software development projects, what worked during the initial design & framework stages? Did UML->C++ work for the class framework? Was UML remotely worth it (my first instinct is no, but I've never done a project this big before). Other ideas? Things you'd do differently next time?
posted by devilsbrigade at 4:35 PM PST - 10 comments

Free to Air: I am seeking straight forward info on an FTA system... [more inside]
posted by BrodieShadeTree at 4:27 PM PST - 7 comments

Godspeed You! Black Emperor - East Hastings: "They have a large barge with a radio antenna tower on it, that they would charge up and discharge." Where's this from (if anywhere)? I've looked around several places that weren't here including Google and no one could answer.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 3:49 PM PST - 13 comments

How did you make the transition from "just dating" to boyfriend/girlfriend? [more inside]
posted by skjønn at 3:44 PM PST - 33 comments

What song are these lyrics from: "I like it when it rains" and "Sideways on my window pane"? Unfortunately that's all I've got. Anyone have any ideas? I, thinking I had some amazing internet skills told my girlfriend I could figure it out to no avail. So now I leave my dignity to you, fellow Ask Mefiers. Please, save my geek cred.
posted by nbrier at 3:18 PM PST - 27 comments

Where can I find an iPhoto plugin developer? I'd like to modify an existing open-source plugin, but I'm not a Mac developer, and calls for help have gone unanswered. [more inside]
posted by o2b at 3:17 PM PST - 5 comments

I was looking online into some home based businesses. You know those things you read about..."make millions just packing envelopes?" Well, this one is not quite that. Ever heard of www.assuranceplus.net? They just called me and basically said that I could try them out and if I don't make the amount of money that I spent getting my business started, than I would get a full refund. Is this legit? If so, why doesn't everyone do this? Anyone ever made money doing this?
posted by JPowers at 3:16 PM PST - 10 comments

How can I export a map from Google Earth to a website using the Google Maps API? [more inside]
posted by JudgeBork at 3:14 PM PST - 6 comments

Anyone know how to use an Octapad?I have recently aquired a (used) Roland Octapad II, an old MIDI drum trigger set that looks like this, via eBay. I want to test it to see if it works, but I (presently) have no synth/drum machine or anything else with a MIDI IN to test it with. (more inside) [more inside]
posted by phrontist at 3:06 PM PST - 4 comments

Can I plug my dryer into this outlet meant for an electric range? [images inside] [more inside]
posted by FearTormento at 2:40 PM PST - 23 comments

Microsoft Excel. Is it possible to insert some "alarm" function that will notify me if I insert duplicate text in later cells? [more inside]
posted by Amizu at 2:28 PM PST - 4 comments

I'm looking for a historic home (or school/library/what-have-you) wedding venue in Virginia. So far my google-fu has led me to the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley. Can anyone relate experiences with this venue or suggest others? [more inside]
posted by cior at 2:25 PM PST - 11 comments

Xmas filter: I read about Manni olive oil in a Gothamist post--it's a super-fancy olive oil used by Thomas Keller et al. I'd love to get some for my mom for xmas, but the only way I've found to buy it is through the official site, where you have to buy an entire case (for like hundreds of dollars.) I know there has to be somewhere I can get this stuff by the bottle. Any ideas? I'm in NYC. Google skills are weak but I've checked Dean and Deluca, Whole Foods, and Zabars. Thanks!
posted by audrey the bug at 1:47 PM PST - 7 comments

What's the easiest way to fill my new 1GB DAP (works like a USB flash drive when plugged into the Windows PC) with 30% songs I love, 40% songs I've most-recently added to my library, and 30% randomly-selected songs? [more inside]
posted by skryche at 1:46 PM PST - 13 comments

MetaFilter landlords: Please help me aquire a lease... [more inside]
posted by cmonkey at 1:42 PM PST - 11 comments

I've lost my ability to peel a hardboiled egg. Are the eggs different, or is my technique? I used to be able to take the shell and the icky membrane off in one fell swoop, but now things have changed, and I seem to mangle every egg I touch. If I eat any more bits of eggshell, I may calcify. Any hints from people who really like their egg salad?
posted by pinky at 1:30 PM PST - 36 comments

I've been inspired by Make Magazine and Readymade magazine, unfortunately, I don't have all the how-to knowledge I'd like... [more inside]
posted by drezdn at 1:29 PM PST - 11 comments

What are some really nice varieties of coffee beans, and where can I find them in Vancouver? [more inside]
posted by stray at 1:12 PM PST - 20 comments

Food Processors... what can you tell me? [more inside]
posted by dobbs at 12:52 PM PST - 14 comments

I am not a programmer or a designer. However, I am strong with (x)html and css and I have the ability to convert photoshop mockups into clean, standards compliant web pages. Is this a job? Do people out there do this for a living? What are they called? [more inside]
posted by shaneflyer at 12:49 PM PST - 38 comments

Help me chose a font for my legal correspondences: I love Optima, but it's hard to read in multiline paragraphs, and is a tad too modern. Isn't there something more distinctive than Times Roman? Bonus points in the font is already on my Powerbook.
posted by ParisParamus at 12:48 PM PST - 31 comments

What are some sites with nav bars that you like? I need some inspiration.
posted by Mayor Curley at 12:26 PM PST - 5 comments

How much should I spend/what should I buy for support staff/secretaries at work for the holidays? [more inside]
posted by cushie at 12:22 PM PST - 11 comments

There seems to be no shortage of posters of the 1980 Olympic "Miracle on Ice" hockey team. However, I can't find a poster size, un-autographed version of the podium photograph. Corbis has it. What are my options? More research inside. [more inside]
posted by cruelshooz at 12:07 PM PST - 7 comments

What recommendations do you have for an intranet wiki? I need: - page-level access controls - a simple calendar of events (birthdays, travel dates, etc) - written in PHP I love MediaWiki, but there is no concept of private pages (there is a plugin script that supports it, but I want something in the core to ease upgrades). I've also checked out Wackowiki which looks good, but doesn't seem to have any calendar integration. Any suggestions?
posted by gfroese at 12:01 PM PST - 9 comments

My husband is ready to pitch our two month old Whirlpool Gold 3200 dishwasher. We need advice on what to expect from a replacement. [more inside]
posted by maudlin at 11:54 AM PST - 12 comments

When you say you have a high tolerance for pain, don't you really mean to say "I love to complain about how much I hurt"? Or: is this really a case of the more you say it the less you mean it? [more inside]
posted by quacky at 11:51 AM PST - 40 comments

I was thinking about buying a commercial range for my kitchen - a Vulcan costs half as much as a Wolf and has the same output, same safety rating, same dependability and two folks I know who use them love them. However, many of the sellers will only sell to a commercial entity - not just for tax purposes, although I could understand that, but because they tell me my insurance company won't allow it, that I'll need fireproof floors, and industrial venting etc. [more inside]
posted by luriete at 11:50 AM PST - 11 comments

I'd like to password protect the contents of a USB thumbdrive that will be accessed from an OS X and Windows platform. [more inside]
posted by jaimev at 11:50 AM PST - 9 comments

Mechanics: I've got a 1964 chevy bel air which is my daily driver that needs some work. I'd like to do it myself, but I'm sorta a car newbie. What online communities and resources will be useful to me? Do you have any specific anecdotes, tips and tricks for working on old cars? [more inside]
posted by fishfucker at 11:30 AM PST - 25 comments

How do I apply for a job I'm already doing? [more inside]
posted by raedyn at 11:23 AM PST - 3 comments

Thinking about doing business overseas. Caveats? [more inside]
posted by evil holiday magic at 11:09 AM PST - 7 comments

I have an old (200+ years?) Bible that I want to get restored, any suggestions? Pics and more info inside. [more inside]
posted by skrike at 10:29 AM PST - 8 comments

What toothpaste is the best for the health of my teeth and gums? [more inside]
posted by riffola at 10:23 AM PST - 42 comments

ISO Lakka (Finnish cloudberry liqueur). No one seems to import it into the U.S. Does anyone know a U.S. source or a European place that will ship to the U.S.?
posted by KRS at 10:01 AM PST - 6 comments

How do I export outlook email to a common format that I can read anywhere including a MAC. I want to be able to save all my outlook emails but not as a .pst because outlook is the only one that can later read that pst. Is there any tool or export I can use to get each message as a rich text file or some other standard format? The only way I see possible right now is to use the export function to create a tab separated windows or dos file. This sort of works but its messy and all the emails show up as one file. I also thought about maybe exporting it to an access MDB where each record is an email and then creating a report to display them nicely but i dont think the field is large enough to store entire messages in some cases. If anyone knows of cheap software that can do this or perhaps a neat hack please let me know. Thanks!
posted by postergeist at 9:46 AM PST - 7 comments

Mrs. Mitheral would like to get some sleepwear like this, or this, or even this or this for actually sleeping in. The problem is she's got shoulders like Gordie Howe so all those thin strap jobs either just slip right down and off or twist around choking her. She's convinced that if she could find something similiar but with more tank top style straps it would work out. I've wasted more time than I like to think about cruising the women's wear stores at the mall and on line with no luck. Anyone got a recommendation to an online retailer with a product of the style I'm looking for? [more inside]
posted by Mitheral at 9:45 AM PST - 14 comments

What is a reasonable price to pay to get the clutch replaced in a Jetta? [more inside]
posted by nadawi at 9:04 AM PST - 5 comments

Donnie, I'm out of my element. Help me improve my bowling. [more inside]
posted by pieoverdone at 8:46 AM PST - 25 comments

I'm a graphic designer for a non-profit who has been drafted into something of a web role. I'm comfortable with design, HTML, and CSS, but feel rather ill at ease with larger 'back-end' technologies. I would greatly appreciate any suggestions for what technology I should learn, and the best book (or other method) by which I could do so. [more inside]
posted by boombot at 8:26 AM PST - 22 comments

I’m looking for sound files from trains and buses in specific cities of Europe. [more inside]
posted by blue_beetle at 8:22 AM PST - 7 comments

WiFi Repeater - how feasible is this? I am affiliated with a university that offers free wireless internet access. I live less than .2 miles from the nearest building which broadcasts this signal. I can't connect to this network from home, obviously, but I would like to. Is it possible to access such a network by putting an antenna on my roof? How about by placing a repeater in a friends house closer to the source? What are my options likely to be here? [more inside]
posted by gd779 at 8:22 AM PST - 6 comments

Remember the Calvin and Hobbes where Hobbes says he wants a girl he can call "Bitsy Pookums"? [more inside]
posted by jwadhams at 8:10 AM PST - 6 comments

My fiancee still lives at home with her TV-crazy parents. As a gift before our wedding, to thank them for letting me stay at their house literally hundreds of nights, I want to get them a nice 15-20" LCD TV for their kitchen to replcae their crummy 13" CRT. [more inside]
posted by seinfeld at 7:36 AM PST - 16 comments

My girlfriend has had most of her friends move far away recently. I, on the other hand, have just moved away from most of my friends. How does one make new friends now that we're not in school any more? [more inside]
posted by Newbornstranger at 6:53 AM PST - 14 comments

Is it worth it to get a cell phone signal repeater in my house? How much should I expect to spend? [more inside]
posted by thewiseacre at 6:34 AM PST - 9 comments

My girlfriend says our conversations suck. [more inside]
posted by pissfactory at 6:27 AM PST - 45 comments

Is there a online wedding list service where the gifts can be from anywhere (just a descriptive list, not for ordering)? [more inside]
posted by sdevans at 4:24 AM PST - 10 comments

How can I convert a Quicktime MOV file to an animated GIF on Windows XP? [more inside]
posted by snowgoon at 2:43 AM PST - 3 comments

Disaster filter: So, I live in an earthquake zone and am looking for a new apartment. What floor should I live on? [more inside]
posted by MrC at 2:21 AM PST - 15 comments

What songs are about shame?
posted by Korou at 10:31 PM PST - 48 comments

How can the difference be determined between a genuine member vs. a fake member bent on deceptive overthrowing/subverting of a socio-political group's public perception (speaking from an outsider's POV, not belonging to either group)? [more inside]
posted by vanoakenfold at 9:35 PM PST - 19 comments

I don't drink, but for one night, I want to look like I do. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 9:34 PM PST - 80 comments

X-rated pictures posted on the internet. Any recourse? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 9:33 PM PST - 45 comments

What websites would you write yourself a note to remember if your entire memory of the internet was about to be erased? [more inside]
posted by ND¢ at 9:01 PM PST - 33 comments

i have a 58-minute video in iMovie - just regular digital video import (30 FPS, 720x480 pixels) which for some reason takes up 12 gigs on my hard drive. I want to burn this to make a DVD out of this movie, but 12 gigs is way too big. How do I burn this regular 58-minute video on a regular 4-gig DVD? there must be some way, since you can get 2 hours of Hollywood movie on a DVD... why not my 58 minutes of amateur video? (Why would it take up so much space, anyway?)
posted by mark7570 at 8:53 PM PST - 9 comments

What to get for a samurai movie fan/middle school teacher? [more inside]
posted by nakedcodemonkey at 8:39 PM PST - 25 comments

My dog and I play a game every day, in which I spend ten minutes sliding kibbles of dog food across the floor while she chases them. Easily half of them go unnoticed by her because of bad timing on my part, or because she gets distracted mid-throw. Dozens of them end up all over the floor. She will only eat a just-thrown kibble. I can throw one that hurls past her, and she can turn around and touch her lips to each kibble, one at a time, until she finds, unfailingly, the one that I just threw. How does she know?
posted by waldo at 8:17 PM PST - 21 comments

I have a new 12 inch PowerBook with original power adaptor, my girlfriend has a 1 year old iBook with original power adaptor, I also have an old 15 inch 877 MHz "TiBook" PowerBook with an aftermarket power adaptor supposedly built just for that TiBook (at least I was told it would work with that TiBook.) Can we share power adaptors? Or should I only use my new power adaptor with my new PowerBook?
posted by pwb503 at 8:16 PM PST - 7 comments

Wanted: Phone for T-Mobile. Must be GSM triband (for international roaming), have Bluetooth, long battery life, unlockable and * Simple Quick operation * [more inside]
posted by lalochezia at 8:11 PM PST - 16 comments

I understand what right wing christians are upset about, but how do I get them to understand and not dismiss my beliefs?
posted by bigmusic at 8:07 PM PST - 24 comments

I could use some first-hand recommendations for first-date meetup spots in Chicago. Looking for reasonable and interesting places for drinks, dinner, maybe some background entertainment, that foster conversation without shouting. Prefer classy & pleasant vs. trendy and cool. i.e. not looking for dance clubs or meat markets.
posted by Tubes at 7:41 PM PST - 10 comments

University fundraising for speakers - please help! [more inside]
posted by loquax at 7:12 PM PST - 14 comments

CatFilter: There are two cats I would like to adopt, but I only have room for one. I'm agonizing over which to choose. Help me decide! [more inside]
posted by lunalaguna at 7:03 PM PST - 35 comments

Where can I buy a nice XXL Tall black suede jacket in NYC?
posted by paul_smatatoes at 6:20 PM PST - 3 comments

Please help me find this interview with former House Appropriations Chairman Jamie Whitten of Mississippi. [more inside]
posted by Mr. Justice at 6:11 PM PST - 3 comments

Help me choose a bibliographic reference manager for OS X... [more inside]
posted by sanitycheck at 5:49 PM PST - 11 comments

Electric Guitar Filter: 1965 Fender Mustang. Suck or not? I've looked it up and as it is considered a "student" guitar it's not supposed to be worth much however; [more inside]
posted by snsranch at 5:48 PM PST - 5 comments

Is there any way to get EndNote -- yes, yes, I know, a steaming pile of rancid bits of a software app -- to correctly cite a website? [more inside]
posted by docgonzo at 5:37 PM PST - 10 comments

I am on a volunteer board that is renewing the executive director's contract. When renewing a contract (non profit organization) is it traditional to give a big bump in base pay, expand fringe benefits, etc. We are looking for advice. Is the raise close to what the annual raise is normally ie: 4-5% or different.
posted by lag at 5:06 PM PST - 5 comments

Meaning of "eloecea"? [more inside]
posted by zharptitsa at 4:59 PM PST - 23 comments

Travelling to Singapore at the end of the month. Does anyone know of any reasonably priced boutique hotels there? A nice place to be my base camp during my visit. [more inside]
posted by beatnik808 at 4:08 PM PST - 9 comments

Looking for seasonal music. We are not Christian, so we are looking for, in order of preference, Yule music, winter music (OK, I don't know exactly what I mean by that, but maybe you do), secular "Christmas" music. Got favorites you'd care to recommend? I'm mainly looking for CD titles, but would welcome song titles too.
posted by bricoleur at 4:01 PM PST - 38 comments

I saw someone in one of my classes that has this neat 5-color pen + mechanical pencil. I thought that it might be a fun item to add to my online store, and wanted to find the manufacturer. I found one of the pens themselves online at an e-commerce site, but I can't find any information on them. Can you help me find a manufacturer or distributor? [more inside]
posted by arrhn at 3:47 PM PST - 7 comments

I've just now received one of countless pieces of gibberish email from an executive at work. Why is it that the more money someone makes, the less able they are to write even a semi-coherent message? [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 3:37 PM PST - 53 comments

Seven years ago, I had an extended affair with a celebrity, and it has recently come back to haunt me. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 3:36 PM PST - 63 comments

I unwisely coasted through college, and here I sit, one year later, Communication degree and 2.8 GPA, grinding it out from menial job to menial job. I'm not here to make excuses, but rather to make up for past mistakes, as I finally discovered that inner drive that's pushing for me to pursue a career in Law. Other than acing the LSATs and getting some law firm internships under my belt, what other sorts of steps can I take to buffer my standing before applying to Law school?
posted by Mach3avelli at 3:21 PM PST - 16 comments

I'd like to understand more about how music licensing works (especially for online music downloads, which seems particularly maddening), how it relates to traditional pre-internet music licensing, and if there's any chance the system may change in the near future. [more inside]
posted by funambulist at 2:47 PM PST - 8 comments

Both my wife and I use separate Microsoft Outlook installations to manage our calendars and to sync our calendars with our cell phones and pdas. Now, we need a way for an assistant to manage our calendars from another computer. [more inside]
posted by richardhay at 2:19 PM PST - 11 comments

How can I configure Firefox so that I can use Cmd-1 through Cmd-9 for bookmarks on my personal toolbar, identical to the behavior Safari uses? [more inside]
posted by WCityMike at 2:02 PM PST - 3 comments

I believe my dad is gay (but still in the closet); I'm curious about how other families/children handle this situation. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 1:30 PM PST - 20 comments

Book suggestions for a 13-year-old. [more inside]
posted by graventy at 1:20 PM PST - 52 comments

Is there anyway to automate Bluetooth file transfers on Windows SP2 using the Microsoft Bluetooth software? (This is a followup of sorts to a previous query of mine.) [more inside]
posted by tommasz at 12:54 PM PST - 0 comments

My right knee is making strange noises when I flex my leg. [more inside]
posted by srboisvert at 12:43 PM PST - 12 comments

AppleMailFilter: I’d like to synchronize my (non-smart) mailbox folders in Apple’s Mail program to use on two computers without using IMAP folders or iSynch… [more inside]
posted by tulseluper at 12:31 PM PST - 7 comments

Looking for a fun strategy/war video game. [more inside]
posted by starman at 12:30 PM PST - 29 comments

Any suggestions on how to sell a framed serigraph by Eyvind Earle, that is worth a few thousand dollars?
posted by sugarwater at 11:58 AM PST - 4 comments

What is the WWE introduction song called? [more inside]
posted by arimathea at 11:39 AM PST - 3 comments

How can I coil up my iPod headphones cord so that it doesn't tangle? [more inside]
posted by event at 11:32 AM PST - 19 comments

Basic lighting kit for indoor (mostly portrait-in-setting) photography? [more inside]
posted by CaptApollo at 11:25 AM PST - 15 comments

I own a windable Timex watch given to me about twenty years ago. I have been using it for the past few years without problem, but now it doesn't seem to keep time very well. Timex HQ says that they won't fix it because of its age and parts likely being unavailable. How can I get this watch tuned up/repaired? I'd like to keep it - great sentimental value plus my name engraved in the back.
posted by cadge at 11:25 AM PST - 8 comments

I used to make little movies in Flash. Nothing big, just fun little projects. I'd like to start making them again, and was wondering if there are any alternatives to Flash. [more inside]
posted by soplerfo at 11:20 AM PST - 6 comments

Is there a measure for the accuracy of weather predictions? Have predictions been increasing in accuracy recently? Over the last decades? Any notable major changes? Is a temperature prediction much more accurate than a precipitation % forecast? [more inside]
posted by foraneagle2 at 11:09 AM PST - 7 comments

HDTV Antenna question: My folks are getting a new HDTV delivered in two weeks or so. Their local cable company doesn't offer all of the local networks in hi-def so my folks are thinking of getting an antenna in the attic to pull in the rest of the local hi-def signals. [more inside]
posted by gyc at 10:43 AM PST - 12 comments

Netopia SWL-2300N wifi card drivers? [more inside]
posted by warbaby at 10:29 AM PST - 4 comments

Theoretically, if I needed large amounts of carbon, could I extract it from the air? How could I do it?
posted by Mwongozi at 10:20 AM PST - 18 comments

Has anyone flown on Czech Airlines recently? I'm flying them from NYC to Prague in January and the most recent reviews I've seen of them are 2-3 years old.
posted by parttimesaint at 10:18 AM PST - 9 comments

I'm about to set up a database (pet science project) that has about 200 million records consisting of about 50 mostly-numeric fields. Is mysql up to this task? If not, what is? And since many fields are null, how can it be optimized to consume the least possible disk space? I'm worried about bloat eating up my 100 GB drive.
posted by shannymara at 10:05 AM PST - 9 comments

I'm going to Savannah, GA this weekend; so what should I see (and what should I avoid?)
posted by lilboo at 9:12 AM PST - 14 comments

Car trouble! It's freezing cold out this morning. The car won't start. The engine doesn't turn over or make any regular engine-y noises. (obviously I'm not the best with cars, so please use small words in your advice...) [more inside]
posted by inging at 8:53 AM PST - 29 comments

Any ideas on how to go about becoming a private detective in Illinois? Read on... [more inside]
posted by ggypsy at 8:46 AM PST - 9 comments

SingleParentFilter: I am a single dad with primary custody of my son. His mother has a live in boyfriend who she met and moved out for while we were still married. I am having trouble dealing with my feelings towards this man as I see him becoming a bigger part of my son's life. What are strategies I should know? [more inside]
posted by DragonBoy at 8:29 AM PST - 43 comments

What is the origin of the "I just threw up a little bit in my mouth" phrase? [more inside]
posted by tegoo at 8:28 AM PST - 27 comments

For all ye audiophiles: I have Digi 001 with ASIO sound drivers installed on WinXP, how can I control the volume? [more inside]
posted by Edible Energy at 8:18 AM PST - 3 comments

DummyFilter: Can I use a flash mp3 player to transfer songs from one computer to another? [more inside]
posted by melimelo at 8:17 AM PST - 9 comments

DatingFilter: I'd like to send a message to a guy on Friendster, but I can't decide what I'd like to say. [more inside]
posted by hamster at 7:31 AM PST - 37 comments

Where can I find an extensive list of 'labeled generations'? (i.e. 'X', 'Y', 'The Greatest', 'Baby Boomers', etc.) [more inside]
posted by Wild_Eep at 7:07 AM PST - 8 comments

What is the significance of Christ holding a ball/globe in Medieval Christian art? [more inside]
posted by saffron at 7:00 AM PST - 26 comments

I can't seem to find a roofer who is interested in working on my house, but there is water pouring through my kitchen ceiling! [more inside]
posted by anastasiav at 6:36 AM PST - 27 comments

Does anyone know any good recycling storage options? [more inside]
posted by Alison at 6:12 AM PST - 11 comments

What is the name of the medicine or medicines that vets prescribe to fight the worm inside cats that looks like a small white grain of rice? [more inside]
posted by mediareport at 5:26 AM PST - 11 comments

How to develop a social software application? [more inside]
posted by germanguy at 3:43 AM PST - 7 comments

I am looking for a website (not a specific one) that has a list of quotes from members of the Bush administration, with the quotes now obviously misleading, incorrect, and or lies. This is the kind of thing I am looking for. http://www.house.gov/schakowsky/iraqquotes_web.htm [more inside]
posted by JokingClown at 3:31 AM PST - 9 comments

I need to identify a toy from years gone by. It was made perhaps by Playskool. It had a white plastic base that extended upward into a handle. The bottom of the base itself had a half-sphere of transparent plastic at the bottom connected to two blue wheels. Within the half-sphere of transparent plastic were numerous plastic ping pong balls colored in primary colors. When this wheeled contraption moved, it resulted in much "pock pock pock" noise as the balls were rattled about by a popping plate at the bottom of the half-sphere. [more inside]
posted by TwelveTwo at 1:36 AM PST - 16 comments

What do I do with all this plastic? [more inside]
posted by knave at 11:44 PM PST - 8 comments

How do you pronounce the Welsh "state" of Powys?
posted by jsteward at 11:01 PM PST - 46 comments

Advice on selling an expensive shearling coat? [more inside]
posted by larva at 10:16 PM PST - 2 comments

I'm looking for movies where the hero finally has the opportunity to kill the villain, but chooses to "do the right thing" and to spare him instead. [more inside]
posted by roaring beast at 8:54 PM PST - 68 comments

Nice hotel room in Manhattan, 12/7, one night, non-refundable reservation that cannot be changed or canceled - and my wife isn't going on her business trip (last-minute change of plans). Is there anything that can be done? Any way to use/donate/offer it for some money and/or a good purpose? [more inside]
posted by WestCoaster at 8:36 PM PST - 9 comments

Do most gyms have mirrors that make you appear thinner? Are deceptive mirrors used in department store fitting rooms? How common is this practice?
posted by palegirl at 8:30 PM PST - 20 comments

Firefox (1.5, XP Pro) upload history? [more inside]
posted by Kwantsar at 8:19 PM PST - 4 comments

I am trying to buy or make a "trapeze artist", a stuffed animal or doll that does trapezes, like they have on the ceiling in stew Leonards. can anyone tell me how to make one or where to buy one? [more inside]
posted by Izzmeister at 6:53 PM PST - 6 comments

Looking for music with interesting or creative uses of silence. Please no John Cage.
posted by Joseph Gurl at 5:45 PM PST - 50 comments

I'm looking for a wine produced by Richard Leakey. [more inside]
posted by rdr at 5:44 PM PST - 6 comments

How can you trust websites that include a comments section but delete comments that disagree with the original poster? [more inside]
posted by SeizeTheDay at 5:34 PM PST - 22 comments

I am particpating in a group interview tomorrow for someone who is potentially a new boss for me. Any ideas of good questions to ask? [more inside]
posted by TheLibrarian at 5:18 PM PST - 12 comments

Should I go to Oslo at the end of December? [more inside]
posted by Marquis at 5:18 PM PST - 7 comments

Should I buy a bulk pack of Swiffer electrostatic cleaning cloths, the 3M version, or a washable electrostatic cloth? Or is there a DIY route to charge cloth or other materials? [more inside]
posted by Jack Karaoke at 5:02 PM PST - 7 comments

Help my cat get regular. [more inside]
posted by amber_dale at 4:49 PM PST - 17 comments

i need a portfolio for an upcoming interview. help me find one that is stylish and inexpensive [more inside]
posted by chuckforthought.com at 4:46 PM PST - 5 comments

Just how good does a resume have to be? Please post links to some of the resumes that have blown you away.
posted by smoothie at 4:27 PM PST - 19 comments

Calling fellow london mefites: suggestions on relatively inexpensive womens shoes or boots to withstand all day sightseeing in London`s December weather. Also bonus points on where to buy them (she will be staying in Kensington). [more inside]
posted by skybeedoo at 3:47 PM PST - 4 comments

Rhapsody has launched for free on the web, and it's compatible with Macs. Great - except I'm based in the UK, and they're using IP blocking to prevent non-US residents from using the service. So what's the most efficient, most reliable, least painful way for my UK-based Mac to spoof Rhapsody into thinking I'm in the States? I don't mind paying a little.
posted by skylar at 3:34 PM PST - 17 comments

What is the etymology of the phrase flaming liberal? [more inside]
posted by sequential at 2:12 PM PST - 14 comments

I'm speaking on a panel at a tech conference tomorrow for the first time. I'm nervous. Any last-minute suggestions or advice for preparing for a 1.5 hour moderated discussion in front of a big crowd? [more inside]
posted by waxpancake at 2:05 PM PST - 19 comments

I'm moving to Atlanta in January... Where should I live??? [more inside]
posted by phaedrus441 at 1:49 PM PST - 16 comments

Creative alternatives to a Christmas tree? [more inside]
posted by grrarrgh00 at 1:26 PM PST - 33 comments

I'm looking for the origination of the "immortality as a curse" archetype. [more inside]
posted by cyphill at 1:22 PM PST - 20 comments

I need help locating a screen grab/shot from the West Wing. I'm looking for any shot in which Bartlet is slamming something on his desk - books, papers etc... These scenes usually take place when Jed is mighty angry. I want to incorporate the picture into an Xmas present for my boyfriend.
posted by Constant Reader at 12:33 PM PST - 13 comments

I am working on an application that will send an html-newsletter. It looks great in thunderbird or Outlook, and like crap in Gmail or Hotmail, which a lot of the recipients use. The template uses css, which is included in the headers of the message (not linked). What is the common wisdom about html-email that looks good in Hotmail and Gmail? Is there any way to keep the CSS or do I have to start over from scratch? [more inside]
posted by signal at 12:30 PM PST - 11 comments

I have two UPS boxes (APC CS 500 and APC ES 500). Both have this issue: I have two machines plugged into it. I shut the power off. What's supposed to happen is that the UPS is supposed to power the boxes for X number of minutes on its battery, but what actually happens is both machines shut right down in that second when the thing(s) go(es) to battery. Any ideas why? Isn't that... wrong?
posted by xmutex at 12:30 PM PST - 24 comments

Posting this for a friend whose MeFi account is not active yet. I have a UI issue I'm trying to solve. How to create a casual but efficient interface to a series of audio and video clips of an author, talking about themselves and their book. It's a "conversation with the author" feature for a book site, and I'd like to avoid making the feature just look like a "clip browser". It should have a conversational feel to it. [more inside]
posted by camworld at 12:26 PM PST - 3 comments

I'm thinking of attending Macworld 2006 but I'm puzzled by the array of available discount codes to use when registering online. Any tips to share about that or about things to do while at Macworld?
posted by runningdogofcapitalism at 12:06 PM PST - 12 comments

Should my girlfriend and I drive to The Eden Project this weekend? And what to see and do in St Austell? [more inside]
posted by ajp at 11:57 AM PST - 11 comments

My wife is a pharmacy student and needs a PDA, primarily to run pharmacy-related databases from Lexi-Comp. I've owned only Palm handhelds in the past, but I want the best value for the money and have narrowed the field down to the Palm TX and the Dell Axim X51. [more inside]
posted by wheat at 11:51 AM PST - 7 comments

mp3Blogs: What are your current favorites? I'm less interested in pop and indie stuff. I want more world, old-timey, novelties. I know they are lots of lists out there but I'd like to know about your faves.
posted by captainscared at 11:49 AM PST - 13 comments

I'm fed up with blo.gs. Anyone know of a replacement? [more inside]
posted by paulrockNJ at 11:25 AM PST - 13 comments

If retail space is really lorded over by bean counters, why do big boxes build so many checkouts that sit unused? On the morning after Thanksgiving, the north Dallas Super Target I went in briefly only had 9 out of 24 registers open. Why do they build them this way? Has anyone ever seen 90%+ of them open?
posted by hodyoaten at 11:24 AM PST - 23 comments

Does anyone have a good resource (book, magazine article, web site, etc) that shows what the etiquette is for tipping in difference circumstances? [more inside]
posted by Steve_at_Linnwood at 11:08 AM PST - 5 comments

Is my flatware sterling, silver-plate, or something in-between? [more inside]
posted by beagle at 10:51 AM PST - 10 comments

Scotchfilter! What's a decent, inexpensive and readily available single malt or good blend for a brand-new scotch drinker whose current dram of choice is a good dark sipping rum? [more inside]
posted by mendel at 10:37 AM PST - 65 comments

We have $3,000 left in our Flexible Spending Account (FSA)... pre-tax dollars that must be used by year's end or we forfeit them. We're married, about 40, with no children. Any ideas for good big-ticket items/appointments (health-related) to avoid losing our own money? [more inside]
posted by kurumi at 10:36 AM PST - 39 comments

Is there a word for those life-sized painted wooden figures (most commonly at carnivals) with the oval cut out for your head to stick through, the purpose of which is to give the impression (for the camera?) that you are a strong man with strong arms or that you are one super sexy lady?
posted by nobody at 10:34 AM PST - 8 comments

Who keeps calling me at the same time everyday? [more inside]
posted by JPigford at 10:23 AM PST - 17 comments

Going to Rome tonight and staying a week. Recommendations for a couple in the mid-twenties for fun night time activities. [more inside]
posted by Cool Alex at 10:12 AM PST - 9 comments

Is there any way to recharge electrostatic vinyl cling decals? You know, the kind that stick to glass without adhesive.
posted by jjg at 10:07 AM PST - 4 comments

This site: http://www.skepticreport.com/print/quantum-p.htm ...suggests that Feynman's 'sum over all histories' approach to Quantum Electro-Dynamics has sidestepped the well known 'observer problem' in quantum mechanics (exemplified by the Wigner's Friend paradox). Is this true? [more inside]
posted by unSane at 10:05 AM PST - 10 comments

Let's hear your method for preventing colds and other sicknesses! [more inside]
posted by nitsuj at 10:02 AM PST - 66 comments

..French pens.. Anyone know if there is a way to buy French school-type pens online? What I'm talking about are the fountain pens with the blue ink cartridges and the corresponding eraser pens.
posted by shoesandships at 9:58 AM PST - 7 comments

What are some good asset management IT solutions for a small company? Primarily with laptops and cameras. No need to track small <$50 items. [more inside]
posted by geoff. at 9:58 AM PST - 6 comments

I am looking for a scanner that can automatically feed photographs (not negatives or slides) in a variety of sizes (no larger than 8" x 10"). The pictures are almost exclusively black and white (or sepia), but there are a few thousand to be digitized, so something automated would be preferred. [more inside]
posted by istewart at 9:55 AM PST - 4 comments

Can I set up a wifi "repeater" to extend the range of my wifi? [more inside]
posted by anadem at 9:49 AM PST - 9 comments

I’m looking for reviews/recommendations with respect to small-group or small-boat tour companies. I’d like to go somewhere exotic, have someone else worry about all the details, and be assured of a great experience. Any advice?
posted by found missing at 9:45 AM PST - 2 comments

If a hosting service shuts you down for TOS, do they delete your site or just shutdown access? [more inside]
posted by nramsey at 9:43 AM PST - 4 comments

What do "publishing rights" entail? Game maker Acclaim is selling off publishing rights to over 200 games, and I was wondering what I'd get if I bought the rights to one. Basically: If I set up some kind of collective donation site, and we bought the rights to a game, could I then creative commons or public domain license it's content, or just the production (DVD, CD, etc)?
posted by zerolives at 9:36 AM PST - 6 comments

I am looking to buy my Dad either an encyclopedia or a dictionary/thesaurus for his palm this christmas. Is anybody using one of these that they love?
posted by pointilist at 9:33 AM PST - 2 comments

Winter is approaching, and I need a decent pair of Bunny Slippers (you know the kind, fuzzy and with long ears). The problem: I take a size 47 shoe (european, that's a Men's 12 in the UK and a Men's 13 in the US), and nobody sells them that large. Does anybody have any leads on people that would sell them in my size? If they'll do shipping to the Netherlands it would be useful, but any leads are useful. [more inside]
posted by fvw at 9:28 AM PST - 3 comments

Firefox 1.5-Filter... I just installed Firefox 1.5, and now when I open it up there's this huge grey toolbar-like space at the bottom of the window with a small red upwards pointing arrow on the left [screenshot]. How do I get rid of it? [more inside]
posted by ruwan at 9:27 AM PST - 9 comments

A friend of mine and I were wondering today how encryption was done in character-based languages like Chinese and Japanese before the advent of computerization. Whereas all kind of substitution and transposition ciphers come to mind immediately for letter based languages like Latin, it isn't obvious how you could use them for a language with many thousands of distinct characters.
posted by sindark at 9:23 AM PST - 9 comments

I'll be in Europe during the Winter Olympics in Turin, so I thought I'd swing by to catch an event or two. I got online to book a hotel today, and there's nothing available (big surprise). However, I still want to go... should I stay in Milan or Genova and catch a train into town for a day trip or something? I've never been to Italy... so I don't know how complicated it would be to "catch a train" for a day trip.
posted by bamassippi at 9:18 AM PST - 2 comments

AudioFilter: Looking for a mixer that does just enough to get by. [more inside]
posted by mr.dan at 9:14 AM PST - 7 comments

I have a Treo 650 using Sprint. I need to use POP & Exchange Active Synch for my mail synching/sending/receiving. But my Exchange 2003 server is locked down so it can't relay except for a few IP addresses. I need to discover the IP subnet that Sprint is using to send mail so I can allow it to use my exchange server as a relay so I can send email from my Treo. Any ideas what this is, how to find it, or how to do it otherwise?
posted by aacheson at 9:13 AM PST - 6 comments

Help me find these Merrell boots! [more inside]
posted by echo0720 at 8:54 AM PST - 6 comments

Is there a cable I can purchase that will connect an old hard drive (i.e. the one I just removed from my old computer before donating it) and my new computer, preferably with a USB interface? I'm mainly interested in making sure there are no useful files on it before I destroy it. I run WinXP, if it matters.
posted by docpops at 8:41 AM PST - 9 comments

My best friend's dad (who is like a father to me) was born at a Nazi POW camp soon after WWII. We are going to Germany on holiday in a few days, and he would like to hunt down a birth certificate because his father does not have one. Help? [more inside]
posted by bryak at 8:29 AM PST - 3 comments

Organizing MP3s questions. I've got about 50 gigs of music on my hard drive with everything in its place, all nice and neat like. I don't have just random music all over the place, but everything is separated by artist-album in their own folder in the "C:\my music" folder (if that even matters). [more inside]
posted by NoMich at 8:04 AM PST - 19 comments

I'm going to be in downtown Austin, TX for a conference at the end of this week and would appreciate recommendations to any good food/brew in the area. [more inside]
posted by spock at 7:52 AM PST - 14 comments

WhydItEndFilter: Why did your marriage/long term relationship end (or almost end)? If you dodged that scythe, how'd you save it? [more inside]
posted by soma lkzx at 7:41 AM PST - 25 comments

How do your organize all your little stuff (ipods, wires, knick knacks, doojobbies, etc.)? [more inside]
posted by oissubke at 7:10 AM PST - 12 comments

AnnMagnusonFilter: Sometime in the ’90s I heard Ann Magnuson on the radio delivering a kind of doggerel using J.G. Ballard–style bland newspaper-reporter phrasing... [more inside]
posted by joeclark at 6:45 AM PST - 6 comments

I hate Excel. I have a load of data in an HTML table. One of the columns has the data in the format xx:xx.x (e.g. 03:45.7). THIS IS NOT A TIME. IT JUST LOOKS LIKE ONE. Whenever and however I import this into Excel, it will always import it as a time causing me no end of aggrevation. [more inside]
posted by Hartster at 5:49 AM PST - 17 comments

My laptop is a Compaq that came from ebayland. The fella who sold it to me had 'lightly' used it, and he sent it to me with the drive wiped and XP SP 1 installed. Yet it refuses to install SP 2 or any other update. [+] [more inside]
posted by moonbird at 4:26 AM PST - 11 comments

We will be spending 24 hrs in Sydney at the end of a 3 week tour round Oz & NZ. Any one have any tips on a nice relaxing hotel? [more inside]
posted by jontyjago at 3:52 AM PST - 4 comments

What is the best area of the Great Wall of China to see, with one full day to devote to the trip? [more inside]
posted by evadery at 3:06 AM PST - 13 comments

Any word on the SF free wireless offer? [more inside]
posted by purplefiber at 2:01 AM PST - 7 comments

Do you have any first or second hand electric bicycle experiences, particularly with the new hub drive retrofit kits? [more inside]
posted by loquacious at 1:40 AM PST - 4 comments

It's that time of year and I've got my first cold. I can deal with the body aches, the sore throat and the stuffy head...but how do I stop my nose from running?! I mean, it's so bad that I can't get to sleep because I can feel the drip and it's driving me INSANE. Help!
posted by youcancallmeal at 12:00 AM PST - 25 comments

I'm moving to San Francisco in January. What should I know before I go? [more inside]
posted by BuddhaInABucket at 11:24 PM PST - 25 comments

Where can I order a reasonably-priced organic turkey in Toronto? [more inside]
posted by Felicity Rilke at 10:20 PM PST - 7 comments

This pertains to Forex EUR/USD trading. Is anyone aware of a service that will alert you via email when the RSI indicator hits a certain Indicator point (RSI down crossing 30%) ?
posted by Mckoan1 at 9:43 PM PST - 5 comments

I have an old (first generation?) Handspring Visor that I'd like to use as a portable writing device. Will I be able to find the hardware to do this? Images of device here. [more inside]
posted by alan at 8:40 PM PST - 15 comments

Hey, NYC MeFites. I need some help getting around. [more inside]
posted by Jon-o at 8:10 PM PST - 17 comments

iPodFilter: How do I get my library to fully sync with my iPod? [more inside]
posted by matkline at 7:17 PM PST - 6 comments

Help me install Perl modules on my Windows machine! [more inside]
posted by joshuaconner at 7:11 PM PST - 7 comments

I've found a domain name I want to acquire from its current owner, and it looks like I may be able to do so. The IP address at which the domain resides is listed in a spam blacklist database. If I acquire the name and give it a new IP address, I assume that particular problem goes away. What's the best place, though, to check and see if the domain name itself is widely considered to be a spam source? Should I consider the IP listing to sully the domain -- am I buying a potential Superfund site? [more inside]
posted by precipice at 6:58 PM PST - 5 comments

What's the etymology of "gully" (as in "street", "badass")? Thanks.
posted by matteo at 5:59 PM PST - 11 comments

Fun things to do in the Charlotte Douglas Airport (or nearby)? [more inside]
posted by artifarce at 4:20 PM PST - 3 comments

What do you retain and gain from casual reading? I was just looking over my mostly non-fiction bookshelf and a few questions came over me. Of all the hours I have spent reading all of this, how much have I really retained? I look back on books I have read and can remember the premise and theme, but as far as recalling all or even some of the many arguments, anecdotes, etc. included within the book, I don't have a clue. Do I have a incredibly bad 'reading' memory or is this a common occurence. And what am I really gaining from all of these hours spent reading if I have a scant recollection of it all? Am I being entertained in the moment? Becoming subconsiously wiser? Most of what I have read about intelligent reading seems too rigourous for a lazy sunday afternoon in the hammock. How can I remember what I read and extract the most value?
posted by jasondigitized at 4:19 PM PST - 21 comments

Help solve two G4 Powerbooks' battery problems! (One wakes up from sleep and depletes itself to death, one can't estimate time remaining accurately and goes to sleep when battery isn't empty) [more inside]
posted by sdis at 4:16 PM PST - 4 comments

I'm interested in hearing personal experiences of movies based upon literary works. Which movies are best experienced only after you've first read the book? Has reading the book afterwards altered your opinion of a movie or indeed has your appreciation of a book changed after you watched the film adaptation? [more inside]
posted by wannalol at 4:14 PM PST - 45 comments

Is there an effective way to block the use of Bearshare and Kazaa on my home network? I suspect there should be a way to diable the ports used by these programs but I can't find any definitive info. The router is a Linksys WRT54GS. Thanks
posted by queue_strategy at 4:11 PM PST - 13 comments

What to do in Old Montreal? My wife and I will be spending Saturday through Tuesday in Montreal. Much of the time will be spent visiting with "the kid" who is there from L.A. to shoot a movie.. But we'll have some time to kill... [more inside]
posted by HuronBob at 4:07 PM PST - 10 comments

Why do we use euphemistic names for some kinds of meat? [more inside]
posted by 5MeoCMP at 4:06 PM PST - 52 comments

Internet access for a short-term rented house? [more inside]
posted by jellicle at 3:48 PM PST - 11 comments

Alternative careers for biologist? I have reached a point that I absolutely HATE my new job (science teacher at a high school/first year). I was hoping that other posters could brainstorm or think of options that I have not thought about - I plan to do a lot of work (informational interviews to reading career alternative books) - but this post may give me new ideas! I am a bit worried as I frequently become bored with jobs and what I am looking for may not exist. I have a Ph.D. in a neuro field. I hated research but subsequently enjoyed teaching college courses (everything from intro biology to advanced courses, especially reading and discussing recent literature with students). My own interests that have evolved over the years although not in my field - I love anatomy. In grad school, I taught myself basic anatomy, enough to teach anatomy labs. I had a chance to teach human anatomy at a small college - loved working with cadavers, although I am not an anatomist. Taught comparative anatomy and loved that too - again, dissecting, looking at bones, etc. I enjoy reading about science (NY Times science section) to keeping up with what is new in the field (mental health, pharmacology, genetic studies) - a bit broad, but again, I don't want to do research. I am interested in psychiatric disorders - mainly because those close to me have been severely affected. Also really enjoyed psychopharmacology and neurochemistry in graduate school. I have also been interested in diseases (how do they work?). Finally, I do not want to work in development, but I feel passionate about world events especially in some of the African countries (i.e., Aids). I loved overseas a few years as a volunteer in Africa. I am not really a people person - very introverted/shy - although I did relate well to college students (connected through the material). I've been dissatisfied with high school teaching because (besides the fact that as a first year teacher, I have a wild class) - it does not seem to be intellectually challenging, it is riddled with emotions (=high school students), I miss the creativity and freedom, and most of my job no longer involves the field I love, biology. I actually want out of the job now but am trying to hold on until the end of the academic year. I am in my 30s. I am also committed to living in the New York city area (that is actually why I took this job). I would love to have free time for my other interests, whether it be museums, biking, reading or staring at the wall. Or maybe there is a job that incorporates other interests too?
posted by Wolfster at 3:48 PM PST - 14 comments

My Mom has a new Mac (OS X) and I have a PC (WinXP). How can I remotely see her screen and manipulate it easily? [more inside]
posted by Argyle at 3:09 PM PST - 9 comments

I'll have some people visiting Boston from out of town, and I'm trying to get a list of places to go for New Year's so we can figure out what to do. [more inside]
posted by gnat at 3:07 PM PST - 7 comments

Craigslist has yet to visit my community, and from what I can tell there's a real dearth of comprehensive entertainment/events listings. There are two local colleges, a very small local music scene, and the usual array of chain restaurants and movie theaters, plus some community events. There are some listings in a freebie paper entertainment guide. Anyway, I want to make a site that aggregates all of this information and is searchable by category or key word. Is there a pre-existing content management system that might work well for this? [more inside]
posted by craniac at 2:12 PM PST - 18 comments

Are my recording needs met by a Creative Zen Nano Plus? If not, what device would easily allow fairly good recording from an unamplified single point stereo mic onto my computer (Mac) at low cost? Alternatively, anyone know much about small, cheap, portable microphone preamps? [more inside]
posted by sirion at 1:54 PM PST - 12 comments

Is it worth buying xbox360 without having a HDTV?
posted by pwally at 1:14 PM PST - 31 comments

My Mac is suddenly downloading very slowly. [more inside]
posted by lackutrol at 1:06 PM PST - 22 comments

Should I switch from PHP to Ruby? I know this topic has been covered before, but I have some specific questions that I haven't been able to find answers to, here or elsewhere: 1. How complete are the Ruby libraries? and 2. How is Ruby's performance compared to PHP? [more inside]
posted by jay.jansheski at 12:55 PM PST - 22 comments

After checking out the latest Google Maps API/Web2.0 deal, and making a map which hits on an obscure piece of local history, I got to wondering: Are there any more-or-less out-of-the-box packages for making a site such as that one, so people who don't know how to code can create interesting usages of this sort of technology themselves?
posted by theonetruebix at 12:34 PM PST - 11 comments

Anyone know where I can get detailed baseball stats? I'm not looking for batting averages and strike out counts; I'm looking for play-by-play logs of as many seasons as I can get my hands on. For example, for a given inning:
Batter One strikes out. Batter Two singles. Batter Three singles, runner goes to third. Batter Four hits into a double play, end of inning. In other words, I don't need pitch-by-pitch stats, I just need the result of each at-bat.
Many thanks in advance.
posted by iconjack at 11:56 AM PST - 8 comments

What would be involved with coming up with a wireless (WiFi) solution to remotely control one or several 110v relays over a wireless network? While this is not necessarily the application, think remote control of Christmas lights. I'd prefer to avoid X.10 if possible. [more inside]
posted by Lactoso at 11:43 AM PST - 17 comments

I'd like to get my two sons (six and two) an electric train set. Mostly, it would be for under the tree and other special occasions. Help me not be overwhelmed by the choices. [more inside]
posted by dhacker at 11:01 AM PST - 19 comments

Anyone have any experience with large giclee canvas reproduction prints (of vintage posters)? [more inside]
posted by shoepal at 10:47 AM PST - 7 comments

What do you like about your favorite music? Or, really, how do you describe music you like to someone else who has no clue who you're talking about? [more inside]
posted by martinX's bellbottoms at 10:38 AM PST - 38 comments

Dish Network or DirecTV? Which plan? [more inside]
posted by bh at 10:00 AM PST - 14 comments

i live in boston. i love to travel. why is it that when i go to spain or italy or australia or new zealand, or even fiji, there is no fee to withdraw money from an ATM, but when i go to portland, ME, a mere 100 miles north, the ATM withdrawal fee is always $1-$2?
posted by brandz at 9:42 AM PST - 27 comments

Can you recommend a way to enable about 100 high-school students to get their small low-tech web sites hosted for free or very cheap? [more inside]
posted by iffley at 9:19 AM PST - 9 comments

I think most of us have heard that 1-2 glasses of red wine a day is healthy for you. Is there any reason that one bottle, once a week would have a negative affect? [more inside]
posted by dflemingdotorg at 9:19 AM PST - 17 comments

I don't really have periods. I have one maybe twice a year and when it comes it's very normal (slight PMS symptoms, minor cramps, lasts about 5 days). I started my period when I was 11 and I've never had regular periods, it's always been this exact pattern. [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:43 AM PST - 15 comments

Help me introduce evolution to my parents. [more inside]
posted by heatherann at 8:09 AM PST - 35 comments

Search myspace.com using my address book? [more inside]
posted by hokie409 at 7:44 AM PST - 3 comments

[Internship filter] Any ideas for a summer internship for a college student? Here are her stats: not a U.S. citizen, but can work in the U.S.; native speaker of Russian and Turkmen, fluent speaker of English and Turkish, moderate speaker of Spanish; business major; very personable; college sophomore. Paid internship would be best, but any place that could lead to a future job would be good.
posted by k8t at 7:37 AM PST - 8 comments

Inspired by this thread, I am interested in learning about idiosyncratic public restroom behavior. [more inside]
posted by Falconetti at 1:16 AM PST - 94 comments

How does one start a SourceForge Project and get volunteers to help? [more inside]
posted by AmbroseChapel at 11:55 PM PST - 10 comments

Can I wear a long charcoal overcoat with khaki pants, and look presentable? [more inside]
posted by RikiTikiTavi at 9:19 PM PST - 51 comments

Do you announce your presence in a public bathroom if you're in a stall by making subtle sounds? [more inside]
posted by spiderskull at 8:49 PM PST - 55 comments

I'm taking three months this summer to bike cross-country with my father. Is there any way for us to have (reasonably) uninterrupted wireless internet on the route? [more inside]
posted by felix betachat at 8:19 PM PST - 7 comments

Do people watch complete music videos anymore? MTV and VH1 don't seem to show full videos these days, mainly excerpts.
posted by jeremias at 8:17 PM PST - 27 comments

WordPress Filter: I am trying to show the local time on my WP sidebar. I am located in Sydney, AUS but my server is in the US. I have set the the offset on the WP>Options page under "Times in the weblog should differ by: to the correct setting and posting times are correct. However, when I add the PHP function echo date("M d, h:ia") in my sidebar.php, I get the local time/date of my server. How to I offset this function call to show the correct local time here in Sydney?
posted by qwip at 7:15 PM PST - 10 comments

Firefox is blocking gmail popups, such as the ones for attachments and user info. How to fix? [more inside]
posted by anticlock at 6:49 PM PST - 12 comments

GimmickFilter: Where have all the gimmicks gone? [more inside]
posted by bjork24 at 6:34 PM PST - 12 comments

HTML + javascript question. Changing the text-cursor position of a textarea? [more inside]
posted by Tryptophan-5ht at 6:20 PM PST - 6 comments

Where can I find the version of "Didn't Leave Nobody But The Baby" performed by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings on NPR's World Cafe? [more inside]
posted by JeffL at 6:11 PM PST - 9 comments

Songs about motherhood? [more inside]
posted by chronic sublime at 6:03 PM PST - 36 comments

What is the best (small, simple, and efficient) CPU/RAM meter for OS X? [more inside]
posted by Typographica at 5:52 PM PST - 13 comments

I’m driving considerably more than I used to, and have noticed an interesting phenomenon as a result. At least once a day, I see a driver coming towards a stop sign, prepared to make a rolling stop, fixated on looking to their right. At the final second, they look to the left and slam the brakes upon seeing an approaching vehicle. I’d like to figure out why these folks look to the right, instead of the left, which is the lane that will crash into them first. Am I just noticing the bad drivers because they stand out, or there a better explanation?
posted by yorick at 5:41 PM PST - 14 comments

I want to make a Christmas present for my girlfriend! [more inside]
posted by sveskemus at 5:36 PM PST - 31 comments

Where can I find a place to volunteer in the Chicago area? [more inside]
posted by frankie_stubbs at 5:24 PM PST - 5 comments

Who covers the Mary Tyler Moore theme song "Love Is All Around" in the Chase bank commercial? [more inside]
posted by IndigoRain at 5:21 PM PST - 14 comments

Need some firefox help. Is there any way to combine the toolbars from two different extensions? [more inside]
posted by herting at 5:21 PM PST - 5 comments

I am looking for "pretty" websites... [more inside]
posted by cusack at 4:05 PM PST - 22 comments

Looking for a photograph of Nadia Anjuman, the Afghan Poet that was recently killed. [more inside]
posted by fire&wings at 4:00 PM PST - 7 comments

What PDA or smartphone do I want? [more inside]
posted by By The Grace of God at 2:51 PM PST - 14 comments

What is being referenced when a movie or TV show depicts a lonesome character walking down a darkened street as images of neon signs fly by that all have something to do with the plot? I presume it's some famous movie that I've never seen.
posted by evilcolonel at 2:08 PM PST - 20 comments

Where can I buy a Christmas tree in Boston? I moved to Boston in August and live in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood. In every other city I've lived in, there were Christmas Tree stands all over the place. So far, I've seen none. I want to buy a live tree, but where do I go? So far, all I've seen are the cut-your-own places far out of town. Any ideas?
posted by abbyladybug at 2:05 PM PST - 12 comments

Will converting a home page from shtml to cgi negatively impact its pagerank? [more inside]
posted by Manjusri at 2:03 PM PST - 6 comments

Cultivating mad scientists? [more inside]
posted by small_ruminant at 1:25 PM PST - 13 comments

At the end of Abbey Road, John, Paul and George are trading guitar solos and the section ends with John playing a guitar part that sounds like a howling or blaring car horn. How did he get this sound? Is it feedback? Or is it maybe some kind of pedal effect?
posted by gfrobe at 1:10 PM PST - 6 comments

Multiple day hikes? I'm interested in information on hikes that take place over a series of days. The caveat is that at the end of each day, you arrive in some lodge or other place even though the hike itself is fairly rural. [more inside]
posted by vacapinta at 12:25 PM PST - 23 comments

I need to visit a family member in Santa Fe, NM, in less than two weeks. (I live in Miami.) The airfare right now isn't pretty, but I've heard people say that you can get cheaper fares at the last minute. Is this true? Should I hold off buying a ticket?
posted by chrisgrau at 11:22 AM PST - 19 comments

How to convert late 1980s/1990s vintage ANM Deluxe Paint animations to animated GIFs/PNGs? [more inside]
posted by meehawl at 11:17 AM PST - 15 comments

I have an Audiovox SMT 5600, which runs Windows Mobile 2003SE for Smartphones, and I'd like to sync calendars/tasks with my PC. This is normally done in Outlook, but I'm a Thunderbird user. Is there a desktop PIM/calendar/tasks package that can sync with a smartphone? I don't really need to sync email - I don't have a data package anyway. [more inside]
posted by tirade at 11:08 AM PST - 2 comments

Spoken English courses in Manhattan / elsewhere in NYC? [more inside]
posted by bokononito at 10:54 AM PST - 6 comments

So I found a still-live bird trapped under the wheel of a car. It's now in my bathroom... [more inside]
posted by You Should See the Other Guy at 10:14 AM PST - 17 comments

How can I get a new iPod, or at least a new iPod battery, for free using my still current Apple Care Plan? [more inside]
posted by crapples at 9:27 AM PST - 20 comments

A friend of mine has recently gotten really into wines. I think the whole thing is pretentious, silly, and barely covers the fact that he has become sort of a lush. HOWEVER, if this kind of thing actually impresses women, I would say that it's worthwhile. So here's my question - does it?
posted by afroblanca at 9:08 AM PST - 68 comments

Nero... the custom crossfader settings, for burning CDs, is working, but not really. What's up with that? [more inside]
posted by Necker at 8:57 AM PST - 7 comments

How many people in the United States make over $25 million a year in pre-tax income? How many over some other threshold? Google is failing me, and census.gov is resisting my navigational efforts.
posted by Aaorn at 7:33 AM PST - 10 comments

What is the screensaver used in the movie Me And You And Everyone We Know? [more inside]
posted by Lush at 7:33 AM PST - 11 comments

I am looking for a picture and scholarly reference to twins with different fathers where one father is white and one father is black. [more inside]
posted by brevator at 7:20 AM PST - 9 comments

Can anybody recommend a particularly good generic book (or video) on how to become a successful salesman? [more inside]
posted by booksprite at 7:16 AM PST - 14 comments

My mother has asked me if I can find a book for her for Christmas. She's after something on philosophy - the classical variety in particular. Any suggested titles? [more inside]
posted by edd at 6:22 AM PST - 11 comments

A friend of mine would like to buy an electronic Japanese-English dictionary. What model do you recommend? [more inside]
posted by teem at 5:53 AM PST - 8 comments

Song from a commercial Identity filter. Who are the rappers, and what is the song, on the verizon broadband commercial? The one where the woman in her kitchen and the guy in his tub are in the middle of a concert.. [more inside]
posted by JonnyRotten at 3:48 AM PST - 8 comments

Peak oil, oil shale and tar sands. Is peak oil a concern? [more inside]
posted by bystander at 3:27 AM PST - 17 comments

Do affordable and effective waterproof backpacks really exist? [more inside]
posted by intoxicate at 12:32 AM PST - 16 comments

Make it stop hurting-filter: How can I deal with my horrible toothache until I can go to the dentist? [more inside]
posted by dial-tone at 10:57 PM PST - 37 comments

How do we know the mathematical models of physics — equations modeling the universe — apply across the universe, to data we collect about the universe that may be billions of years old? (What would be the process for verifying this?) [more inside]
posted by Rothko at 10:44 PM PST - 22 comments

How can I arrange my living room so that I can have a living area, a computer desk and a soon-to-be toddler? [more inside]
posted by acoutu at 10:25 PM PST - 7 comments

RFID cat door: how hard can it be? [more inside]
posted by Zed_Lopez at 10:02 PM PST - 16 comments

Can anyone translate the cyrillic text on my hat? [more inside]
posted by apetpsychic at 9:39 PM PST - 14 comments

If I want to alter what people see on their caller ID when I call, is that possible (without ordering a new line from the phone company)? [more inside]
posted by zephyrbill at 8:57 PM PST - 6 comments

Are there other countries that mention God / Allah / etc on their currency like the US currency's "In God We Trust" ?
posted by birdherder at 8:33 PM PST - 8 comments

Weekend (emergency) plumber needed in Seattle! [more inside]
posted by tristeza at 7:21 PM PST - 7 comments

I remember reading at some point about a fairly well known author who, every time he (or she) sold a short story, used the money to buy a piece of artwork. Who is/was this?
posted by almostbarefoot at 6:33 PM PST - 2 comments

Looking for a sleek and compact woman's laptop backpack for the 14" ibook. [more inside]
posted by crack at 6:32 PM PST - 14 comments

Gnats in the kitchen - Help me get rid of these little annoyances ASAP. [more inside]
posted by thecjm at 6:17 PM PST - 13 comments

Where should I go in Europe for a 2-week long walking/hiking in early September? [more inside]
posted by footnote at 5:45 PM PST - 18 comments

On an admittedly silly nostalgic whim, I'm looking to buy memorabilia relating to Ha!, the TV Comedy Network. [more inside]
posted by mykescipark at 5:14 PM PST - 5 comments

A month ago I went to the hospital ER (tiny city) as it was Saturday and I had some weird chest pain. Basically the doctor asked a few questions, an EKG, blood test, and chest X-ray was done, and I was out in 45 minutes after observation. The damage: $475 for the doctor, $95 for the blood test, and $1800 for the hospital (unspecified). No insurance. I'm glad to pay for my care, but this is ridiculous. Any good tips for bargaining this down? Obviously I am in the U.S.
posted by zek at 4:23 PM PST - 30 comments

Where can I learn more about the dangers of harmful bacteria in all kinds of poultry? [more inside]
posted by rorycberger at 4:13 PM PST - 12 comments

I have 2,028 zip archives and a problem that should be trivial but isn't for me. If I unzip them all with a batch utility and don't clear the path saved in the archive I end up with 2,028 directories each containing a single file. If I do clear the saved path I end up with a mess. I need either a windows utility or a perl script to do the following: [more inside]
posted by Grod at 3:51 PM PST - 7 comments

Hard snowboard boots - whether? which? and where to shop? [more inside]
posted by nicwolff at 3:46 PM PST - 9 comments

CarFilter: the lease is up on my 2002 Jetta 1.8T in just under 2 months, and I'm looking to lease a new car. Help me make sure I consider all of the models I should! [more inside]
posted by mikel at 3:20 PM PST - 20 comments

Help me find a poem. I believe these things about it: (1) from the early 1990s, (2) appeared in the New Yorker or Atlantic, (3) written by an elderly woman, (4) about her husband's suicide, (5) contained a line resembling "I do not understand/I will never understand." It is possible that these beliefs are founded on nothing except my faulty memory.
posted by goatdog at 3:19 PM PST - 10 comments

Macfirewirefilter: I just bought a minimate--250gigs. It shows up on my desktop as being 1000gigs plus. Do i really have that extra space? Is something wrong?
posted by amberglow at 2:57 PM PST - 7 comments

I'm looking for a web-based, shareable calendar that can import tab-delimited files for populating the calendar quickly... bonus points for being able to share via RSS, and/or being able to comment on up-coming events.
posted by silusGROK at 2:28 PM PST - 5 comments

Celebrities speaking their mother tongues [more inside]
posted by Gnatcho at 1:51 PM PST - 15 comments

TravelFilter: Specific Washington D.C. questions from a tourist. [more inside]
posted by ikkyu2 at 1:33 PM PST - 26 comments

Driving to work, I was (mildly) rear-ended at a sudden stop in a traffic crawl. [more inside]
posted by pantsrobot at 12:43 PM PST - 19 comments

What are the best, low cost alternatives to Riedel stemware? [more inside]
posted by HiddenInput at 11:52 AM PST - 13 comments

Help me identify a young adults sci-fi/fantasy book I borrowed from the Bookmobile over a decade ago. Contains the line: "one of the five!" [more inside]
posted by lbergstr at 11:45 AM PST - 9 comments

What should I sing at karaoke tonight? [more inside]
posted by SassHat at 11:44 AM PST - 41 comments

How do I survive Christmas, control my anxiety, maintain my sanity and find a good therapist? (Very long inside) [more inside]
posted by emptybowl at 11:36 AM PST - 39 comments

Looking for a live Howlin Wolf cover of "I'm A Man," by Bo Diddley. [more inside]
posted by fearless_yakov at 11:24 AM PST - 4 comments

The ethics of screen scraping? [more inside]
posted by If I Had An Anus at 11:11 AM PST - 27 comments

Calling all tea experts . . . [more inside]
posted by peep at 11:04 AM PST - 38 comments

Is there a good book/series/website that simplifies comp. sci. concepts (I'm thinking encryption, hashing, etc.) enough for the average engineer to comprehend? I'm thinking "Computer Science for Theory Dummies". [more inside]
posted by ransom_k_fern at 11:02 AM PST - 8 comments

How can I try out this "waterboarding" I've heard so much about? [more inside]
posted by BleachBypass at 10:53 AM PST - 17 comments

Winter Driving: Subaru AWD, automatic transmission, ice, and other fun. [more inside]
posted by five fresh fish at 10:49 AM PST - 19 comments

Looking for a copy of a CD by the Bulgarian music group "Upsurt". I am totally hooked on this song and I'm having trouble finding any releases by them for sale online. I'll pay purchase price and shipping+ if anyone can help me locate a copy. Also, bonus points if you can suggest any other great Eastern European pop/rap.
posted by jonah at 10:45 AM PST - 10 comments

Recommend unaccompanied brass quintet recordings of Christmas carols on CD. [more inside]
posted by cribcage at 10:43 AM PST - 3 comments

Is mangosteen juice a scam? [more inside]
posted by Rash at 10:40 AM PST - 22 comments

I'm completely artistically and artsy-craftily challenged. But I'd like to design and print a giant Christmas card that starts out looking more or less like a regular-sized one but then unfolds and unfolds and unfolds, etc. until it becomes more of a Christmas greetings poster... Problem is, I can't draw a straight line to save my life, much less envision how I'd design one using some software tool. Does anybody have any suggestions for someplace to look for any guidance? Thanks!!!
posted by Misciel at 10:33 AM PST - 9 comments

Please help me locate a place to buy a copy of the german animated short from 1930 called Das Lämmchen (the original title seems to be Chad Gadjo. [more inside]
posted by cheerleaders_to_your_funeral at 10:31 AM PST - 1 comments

Windows XP Media Center Edition / Home Edition Networking Problem: I don't get prompted for login info when I try to access network shares. I just get "Access Denied"-type errors. [more inside]
posted by jeb at 10:23 AM PST - 3 comments

Are there any good websites showing Christmas wrapping techniques in a clear manner? [more inside]
posted by zadcat at 10:02 AM PST - 8 comments

I need Outlook to automatically forward received email to different addresses based on text in the body of the email. Can this be done with an outlook add-in/plug-in, or possibly done outside of Outlook? [more inside]
posted by de void at 10:01 AM PST - 8 comments

What are your favorite (preferably gel) pens for writing in a Moleskine that dry quickly and won't smudge or bleed? [more inside]
posted by aebaxter at 9:34 AM PST - 35 comments

Jewelry design? Suppose, for the sake of conversation, I'd like to know about key designers and what makes for "good" jewelry. [more inside]
posted by mikeh at 9:04 AM PST - 5 comments

I'm looking for the name of an old computer game, that ran on an Apple IIe (I think). [more inside]
posted by Godbert at 8:46 AM PST - 16 comments

Is it possible to set up Hotmail to only display unread messages? [more inside]
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 8:26 AM PST - 6 comments

Blog question. Should I ask folks who I'm pretty sure are getting their ideas from my blog and not linking back to do so? [more inside]
posted by fixedgear at 8:24 AM PST - 11 comments

Is advent calendar chocolate made using a different process, or different ingredients than your usual chocolate bar chocolate? [more inside]
posted by takeyourmedicine at 8:23 AM PST - 16 comments

Traveling on business with a company laptop -- has a DVD drive, but no DVD software. I want to watch a DVD to make the long train ride home bearable, but I don't have administrator privileges to install any software. [more inside]
posted by Heminator at 8:21 AM PST - 5 comments

I'm looking for some free classic baseball jersey fonts to use for mocking up some team apparel ideas. I'd love to have the variety found here
posted by ooklah at 7:55 AM PST - 6 comments

I am trying to track down the title of a book that was read to my 2nd grade class by the school librarian, so it is at least 23 years old or so. It is about a boy who falls asleep in his parents truck. The truck is stolen, with him in it, and is driven through the desert where the boy escapes from the truck only to be stranded in the middle of the desert with no food or water. He nearly dies of thirst, and survives just barely by collecting dew off of a plastic sheet that he finds. I have tried every kind of Google search I can think of both. Does any body know of and remember this book?
posted by moseymose at 7:52 AM PST - 7 comments

How should I link my monitors for a gig I'm running the PA system for? [more inside]
posted by samstarling at 7:38 AM PST - 5 comments

Anyone know where to find a high quality copy of the Wendy's "Rock Your Burger" ad featuring Benny Benassi's "Satisfaction," and a whole bunch of Wendy's burgers looking like the bars on a spectrum analyzer? There is one copy out there, but is pretty bad. Here is said low quality copy. [more inside]
posted by deadmouse at 7:37 AM PST - 10 comments

Help me source a bit of wisdom about advice and criticism. [more inside]
posted by anglophiliated at 7:30 AM PST - 5 comments

How do I prevent Outlook from resizing inserted images? [more inside]
posted by Blue Buddha at 7:20 AM PST - 2 comments

DVD Authoring software with easy visual interface? [more inside]
posted by chudmonkey at 7:10 AM PST - 10 comments

Expat American hates money, inherits share of house, perhaps $100,000. Do I need an accountant, a lawyer or something else to advise? [more inside]
posted by planetkyoto at 6:51 AM PST - 12 comments

I have a large sum of money (more than $200K) that was secured as part of a mortgage refinance for a house renovation. The renovation will not be undertaken until summer at the earliest. In the interim, where would you recommend I keep the money for a decent return in this short period? (e.g. Ing Direct savings account, a fund, or even a portion in the stock market?)
posted by terrier319 at 6:31 AM PST - 11 comments

There has to be a word that means "popular because it is popular". [more inside]
posted by raaka at 6:19 AM PST - 42 comments

Is there an easy way to allocate downloaded files to specific folders on a mac? [more inside]
posted by brautigan at 5:52 AM PST - 9 comments

NameMyCatFilter: So we are fostering a kitten that was rescued from a house in Mississippi destroyed by Katrina -- a situation that will likely become permanent, and now we are thinking about a name for the little guy. Constraints inside. [more inside]
posted by Rock Steady at 4:54 AM PST - 55 comments

There's a ton of tv recording/viewing software out there for the computer, but which is the best and the cheapest? [more inside]
posted by NekulturnY at 2:58 AM PST - 11 comments

I feel silly for asking this, because I really feel as though I should know the answer, but what the heck is the music in the link in this FPP?
posted by dersins at 12:42 AM PST - 6 comments

I'm using m0n0wall as my router/firewall. I have two NICs, one for WAN, one for LAN, and attached to the LAN NIC is another wireless router, acting as a switch. I'm trying to setup the Captive Portal now. I need some advice. [more inside]
posted by jasmeet at 12:30 AM PST - 1 comments

How can I de-epoxy my P4 from its heatsink? [more inside]
posted by ChasFile at 12:15 AM PST - 7 comments

What open source groupware package to use? [more inside]
posted by ao4047 at 12:14 AM PST - 3 comments

Winter skincare: do's and don'ts? [more inside]
posted by Sara Anne at 10:32 PM PST - 21 comments

How to deal with gnawing wanderlust? [more inside]
posted by Saydur at 10:28 PM PST - 22 comments

Roommate filter: We're having issues with a housemate/friend. [more inside]
posted by lemur at 10:12 PM PST - 27 comments

Looking for an image to include in a lecture I'm giving next week that conveys the physically isolated, immersive experience of being jacked into the Internet, staring deeply into a computer screen, preferably lit with ambient Web glow.
posted by donovan at 9:56 PM PST - 12 comments

I'm in NYC next week and flying out of JFK right after I finish a conference call. I'm wondering about someplace at or near JFK that I might be able to take the call in relative peace and quiet. [more inside]
posted by stevil at 9:49 PM PST - 4 comments

PresentFilter: I want some amazing socks for my wife, and perhaps a couple other things... Looking for mefite ideas. [more inside]
posted by asavage at 9:45 PM PST - 9 comments

Something to do in Los Angeles for about 12 hours? [more inside]
posted by Iax at 9:39 PM PST - 10 comments

Name that book: It's a German language novel in which several heavyweights of science address nuclear proliferation. [more inside]
posted by FissionChips at 9:23 PM PST - 9 comments

Can you provide a referral to a lawyer and/or an accountant with experience advising small businesses (internet based) in the start-up phase? I'm located in Los Angeles in the South Bay area. [more inside]
posted by willnot at 8:55 PM PST - 1 comments

How to cope with unpleasant and not fully explainable longterm medical issues? [more inside]
posted by plinth at 7:52 PM PST - 10 comments

How's the economy in Tennessee? [more inside]
posted by iced_borsch at 7:50 PM PST - 8 comments

How do I get my money back from my ex-roommate? [more inside]
posted by thefinned1 at 7:17 PM PST - 10 comments

Have you ever been visited by a (spirit, ghost, apparition, etc.) of a friend or loved one after they have passed on? [more inside]
posted by punkrockrat at 6:59 PM PST - 53 comments

So I heard this song awhile back and all I can remember is that it was a techno song with what I would guess was an organ as the main instrument. [more inside]
posted by MJaffaDMB at 6:27 PM PST - 11 comments

Tourism with children in New York - where shall I take my 10 year old daughter? [more inside]
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 6:23 PM PST - 28 comments

Can my boss NOT let me resign my position at his organization? [more inside]
posted by elkerette at 6:16 PM PST - 11 comments

When shopping around for an optometrist, is it better to go to a solo practitioner, or a national chain (i.e. Pearle Vision, LensCrafters)? Which do you prefer, and why? [more inside]
posted by invisible ink at 5:46 PM PST - 15 comments

What is the origin of the universal power symbol? You know the one with the circle and the vertical line. [more inside]
posted by sammich at 5:44 PM PST - 14 comments

Please help me find the book Paths to a Good Life - Philosophical Reflections on Everyday Ethics by Henrik Syse. [more inside]
posted by Sasquatch at 5:31 PM PST - 5 comments

InterFaithFilter: Jewish/Non-Jewish intermarriage. Any Mefites have personal experience? [more inside]
posted by luftmensch at 5:19 PM PST - 26 comments

Looking for interesting yet professional ways to package a hardback book which will be sent through the mail. [more inside]
posted by blag at 4:06 PM PST - 14 comments

I heard this great hip hop song on some college radio station while driving through Des Moines, IA. The song featured emo bands in the lyrics. For example, I think the first line was, "I took a death cab to see my cutie". Other bands listed in the lyrics were Sunny Day, Burning Airlines, My Chemical Romance, etc. It kinda sounded like Blackalicious, but I don't think it was them. Any idea who did it and where I can get it? Thanks.
posted by emoeby at 3:29 PM PST - 14 comments

Someone bought me an electric guitar two years ago. Maybe one. I never played it. When I hauled it out of the closet yesterday and took it out of the bag, I discovered that one of the strings was off; it is no longer attached at either end. How unfortunate. Especially for someone who has no idea what to do. How do I fix the guitar?
posted by punishinglemur at 3:21 PM PST - 19 comments

Is there any place I can download or purchase the complete NPR broadcast of the SantaLand Diaries, read by David Sedaris? [more inside]
posted by ducksauce at 2:35 PM PST - 13 comments

What is/could be a useful "notation" used to transcribe hip hop lyrics that would account for the lyrical delivery (i.e. syllables, accents, pauses, word length, etc.)...? [more inside]
posted by iamck at 1:58 PM PST - 29 comments

Someone help (Please). I remember reading a book at School in about 1979-1980, although it may have been printed way before that, it was similar to Tin Tin, and may have been about A Adventurer in space. It also contained a section where our adventurer meets aliens (I think) and you were provided with a Translation section!! Any ideas, i know it's vague, but it's kinda driving me nuts. PS I'm from England so it might be a English publication.
posted by maxmix at 1:53 PM PST - 8 comments

When people who have worked all or most of their lives in a country in which they are not a citizen - I'm thinking of European countries like Switzerland that have very restrictive citizenship rules - are they typically eligible for government retirement benefits and state health care?
posted by bonecrusher at 1:39 PM PST - 3 comments

I have one week in Jamaica. I have advice on what I should do there - but what tourist activities should I avoid? [more inside]
posted by caution live frogs at 1:32 PM PST - 11 comments

Hi, I wondered if any of you knew about where to live in Naples, Florida. My husband and I are in our mid-thirties, with 6 month baby. If the web is to be believed the average age is 137 and all there is to do is shopping and hurricane boarding and hoarding. We are a pretty hip couple moving from Brooklyn NY. We really enjoyed our neighbors and sense of community in Brooklyn but now our husband's job is moving us down to FL. We will probably rent in the short term and would like to be within walking distance of the beach and shops. Any advice would be great, thanks.
posted by libelula at 1:06 PM PST - 13 comments