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March 2005 Archives (all archives)
March 31
Why are "aunt" and "uncle", emplyed in a nonfamilial sense, used as terms of endearment and honorifics in so many societies?
posted by deafmute at 10:21 PM PST - 17 comments 
Any tips for getting rid of static electricity in big, furry dogs? My Old English sheepdog is always rubbing against the couch and rolling around on the carpet. Every time I scratch him behind his ears, I get a slight jolt. I've tried rubbing down his favorite pillow with a Bounce sheet, but of course the static always comes back. Thanks to everyone in advance.
posted by invisible ink at 9:02 PM PST - 5 comments
I'm thinking about upgrading my laptop and use it for amateur DJ'ing in parties. What software and hardware do you guys recommend? Is the Indigo DJ PCMCIA soundcard a good choice or should I go with something external like the Hercules DJ Console?
posted by guictx at 8:17 PM PST - 6 comments
I'd like your help in compiling a workout mix-cd of the most Awesome Cheesily Inspirational songs from movie training sequences. Think "Eye of the Tiger"... or even better, "Hearts on Fire" from the Rocky IV training sequence. And quite possibly the apex: Joe Esposito's "You're the Best" from the Karate Kid. (YOU'RE THE BEST! AROOOUND!) Stuff where you can't help but start going, "Yeah! I'm going to totally train in this montage to kick that guy's ass!" Doesn't even have to be from a training montage, just have that 'feel.'
posted by Stan Chin at 7:25 PM PST - 65 comments
I've recently gotten very interested the science-fiction/horror-with-a-religious-tint genre. Can you think of any good books that could fit that description?
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posted by honeydew at 7:23 PM PST - 46 comments
Any commerical leasing people in the crowd? I'm about to lease office space for the first time, and I'm not sure how to go about it or what the lingo means.
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posted by SpecialK at 3:13 PM PST - 5 comments
Speakers. I have a new set of computer speaker. I'm really happy with them, except they make a loud popping noise anytime I or any of my neighbors turn off a light. (I live in an apartment building.) So I have two questions: Is this harmful to the speakers? Is there anything I can do to eliminate those noises?
posted by epimorph at 3:02 PM PST - 15 comments
Non-Americans: Having recently purchased FIFA Soccer 2005 here in the U.S. I was wondering if they reprint the cover to say FIFA Football 2005 for the rest of the globe (or if the American version is the reprint).
posted by untuckedshirts at 2:40 PM PST - 6 comments
Is there any program out there that will let me a) spellcheck AIM messages and B) show myself as being "Away" or even offline to only certain people on my buddy list?
posted by trinarian at 2:40 PM PST - 8 comments
It seems that soda water (i.e. water with bubbles) doesn't hydrate me very well at all, even when consumed in great quantities. This is true of club soda, seltzer water, and sparkling mineral water. Is it all in my head or is there a good scientific explanation of this?
posted by callmejay at 2:31 PM PST - 10 comments
I've never completely understood why my work's Internet connection, which is supposedly "3 megabit DSL", seems so much faster, shared amongst many more users, than my home's "3 megabit DSL". What am I missing here?
posted by Big Fat Tycoon at 2:08 PM PST - 9 comments
My brother's birthday is coming up and he has worn his copy of WeaveWorld by Clive Barker into pieces from constant re-reading. I want to buy him some similar books, could you recommend some similar books he might like?
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posted by Cyrie at 2:05 PM PST - 16 comments
Is anyone out there driving the new Honda Accord Hybrid? If so, how do you like it? Is there a monster waiting list? I'm impressed by the design and the 39 MPG, which seems very high in these days of 15 MPG rollover prone SUVs...
posted by jgballard at 2:02 PM PST - 10 comments
A good friend of mine works for a large international bank in the SF bay area. This person was informed today that beginning immediately, the two 15 minute breaks that have been allowed up until now are being reduced to 5 minute breaks. This person works a full 8-hour shift, and I was under the impression that a 1-hour lunch/meal break and 2x 15 minute breaks were required by law. What are the legal requirements in California, and how do they differ from federal requirements?
posted by luriete at 1:41 PM PST - 8 comments
That most hallowed of foolish holidays is upon us, minus one. So you've got time... What's the best
April Fool's Day joke you've ever heard or been a part of? I need some ideas.
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posted by airguitar at 1:41 PM PST - 18 comments
I record several NPR radio programs with my
RadioSHARK and am happy with the process except for the vague background noise. What can I use to filter out the noise without the sizable investment in MY time?
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posted by phearlez at 1:33 PM PST - 4 comments
I starting making some crafts to sell at a sorority store around campus, and realized there would be a pretty good online market, so I was wondering a good way to get in contact with product wholesalers to sell online? Any other web start up advice would be appreciated.
Also, annoying second question: Is it possible to pour your own pewter keychains? Each sorority has their own symbol (lyre, crown, arrow, kite, etc.) and I was wondering they would be possible to make.
posted by sicem07 at 11:46 AM PST - 5 comments
Inspired by a post on the blue, I'm looking for recipes to replace frozen dinners. They have to be impossible to screw up and can't require any fresh ingredients. Frozen or pantry only. No involved prep allowed for the frozen stuff either. Ideas?
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posted by smackfu at 11:40 AM PST - 20 comments
I'm looking for a restaurant in the Denver area that will satisfy both meat eaters and vegetarians. I would like it to not be too pricey, but I'm willing to spend a bit more to get an epic meal. I would prefer to avoid Boulder, if at all possible. Any suggestions are appreciated.
posted by Sheppagus at 11:40 AM PST - 7 comments
I would like to name to DeLay as my "Enduring Power of Attorney" in the event that I somehow reach the same state as Terri Schiavo. Would this hold any ground in court? Could he legally refuse the EPA?
posted by sharksandwich at 10:55 AM PST - 7 comments
What is the psychology/biology/(insert)-ology behind what we commonly refer to as "heartbreak?"
posted by playtragic at 10:47 AM PST - 11 comments
I dislike my alarm clock and I want a new one. I'm tired of sleeping too late because the power went out or I couldn't tell if the alarm was set for AM or PM. I'm tired of jumping out of my bed in the morning because the alarm decided to it's awful impression of "the ocean" instead of beep at me. But mostly, I'm tired of taking 5 minutes to set my alarm an hour earlier. Desired feature list and picky UI concerns inside.
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posted by ThePants at 10:03 AM PST - 19 comments
How can I figure out what's leaking from my car? (And other maladies...) Does anyone know of a site -- like WebMD, but for cars -- where I can type in symptoms and narrow down what might be wrong with a car? I know that I can go to a mechanic, but sometimes the first question is whether it's even safe to drive the car to the mechanic.
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posted by xo at 10:02 AM PST - 10 comments
I am a gay man who recently broke up with my partner of 15 years. I am about to head off to my 20 year high school reunion. I haven't seen any of my classmates since graduation. How should I refer to myself? Divorced? Separated?
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posted by Futurehouse at 9:04 AM PST - 21 comments
Looking for information on a painting commonly seen on the walls of Mexican restaurants and sometimes sprayed on the hoods of low-riders. It is a scene of what I believe is an Aztec warrior holding a naked woman above his head. It might be a sacrifice scene.
What is the name and origin of this painting? Link to a picture would be appreciated. Muchas gracias.
posted by suitcase at 8:59 AM PST - 6 comments
I'm moving from NYC to SF in June, to take a job at UCSF. I'm a little daunted by the prospect of yet another transcontinental move, so I thought I'd just ask for general advice, as I'm not even sure I know the right questions to ask. What do you know that you think I ought to know about moving cross-country to SF?
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posted by ikkyu2 at 8:40 AM PST - 13 comments
I need to get four Red Sox tickets for a weekendish game in July. Anyone have experience with online vendors? Is it a rip off? Is one better than another? Comments and ticket acquisition suggestions are greatly appreciated.
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posted by AllesKlar at 8:27 AM PST - 10 comments
I am trying to transfer a large number of files (mostly word documents and excel files) from older Macs (G3s and one '02 iMac) to a Windows Server 2003. The problem is that most of these files were created several years back on OS 9.x and have file names with characters the server does not to recognize as valid. This then stops the transfer of all files, shutting down the whole transfer.
Short of going through 1,000s of files one by one to check the names are valid or moving each file over one-by-one, what can I do? Does anyone have any suggestions or experience?
posted by jeffe at 7:52 AM PST - 7 comments
Does anybody have an easy way in HTML (or CSS) to layer two images on top of each other, while maintaining the ability to switch the bottom image using a javascript event?
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posted by stovenator at 7:30 AM PST - 7 comments
I will have a few days free in tokyo and am looking for an interesting overnight trip, I am not so interested in getting a tourist ticket punched.
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posted by shothotbot at 6:50 AM PST - 5 comments
My favorite deodorant is
Borotalco Deodorante, which is sold in Italy. I can't find it in the States and I can't seem to find it for sale on the internet either. I'm down to the bottom of my last can. Does anyone know where I can buy Borotalco?
posted by pinkkitty at 6:39 AM PST - 2 comments
If I were to work in Bellevue, Washington, where would I want to live? We love where we currently live so we would want to replicate it as much as possible.
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posted by probablysteve at 6:18 AM PST - 11 comments
I nailed a pothole yesterday, and when I got back to my place, I noticed a sizeable bulge in the sidewall. Would I be OK to drive it for a few days? Whats my risk of blowout?
posted by Mach5 at 5:14 AM PST - 16 comments
Music Theory/Chord Progressions: Bm + F#7 + ???
I'm trying to compose my first song on a guitar; being unused to most chord progressions I need some help figuring out what the hell key I'm in and what progression I need to use.
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posted by sciurus at 3:50 AM PST - 18 comments
I've got a mac and a PC sharing the same desk, both on a 802.11g network, but file transfer between the two is atrociously slow, like only a couple hundred kb/sec. Is there any way to transfer lots of data quickly between the two (like several Mb/sec)? A crossover ethernet cable between the two? USB? Firewire?
posted by mathowie at 12:47 AM PST - 12 comments
March 30
I'm a pretty dedicated reader, but one of the genres I haven't explored much is classic crime/noir fiction. (I do love James Ellroy, but that's about all I've read.) I know that the big guns are Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, and Jim Thompson. Any suggestions as to which titles to start with (
The Maltese Falcon,
The Thin Man, and
The Grifters all come to mind first, of course, because of the films), as well as other authors to consider? I'd also be happy to entertain suggestions of really high quality true crime, though my hunch is that
In Cold Blood is probably unbeatable.
posted by scody at 11:42 PM PST - 42 comments
My new Powerbook's harddrive is full (93 GB) so I tossed many huge DVD files. Now I can't empty the trash. How do I force it to empty the trash?
posted by Toolshed at 10:45 PM PST - 8 comments
Some sort of mite is attacking my houseplants, tiny, tiny white specs all over the leaves, how do I stop them and save my plants?
posted by Cosine at 10:34 PM PST - 26 comments
I have many freckles. What's the best way to count them?
posted by swift at 10:33 PM PST - 21 comments
I have been invited to a "baby presentation" for a Wicken friend. I asked what is customary to bring to it (as a gift), and she said "something that will help the child through this world and is spiritual in nature". Help!
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posted by 6:1 at 8:51 PM PST - 18 comments
RaleighFilter: I'm heading to Raleigh, NC for the summer. How do I find a sublet, and what should I do while I'm there?
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posted by Aster at 7:28 PM PST - 8 comments
Weddingfilter: Church ceremony from 2 to 3pm; reception starting at 7pm, less than a half hour of travel in between. Is it too long to make people wait? Out of towners will have hotels nearby; friends might not really have anywhere to go.
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posted by onlyconnect at 6:47 PM PST - 30 comments
I'm the webmaster (well, host is more like it) for a band of talented young men with whom I attend high school. They're having a concert in an auditorium with seating for over 500 and I'd like to see it filled. How do you go about promoting a small local band's concert? [mi]
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posted by phrontist at 6:44 PM PST - 11 comments
The online community is awesome in every area that I search except I am having an awfully hard time finding fun and interactive online multiplayer games. Can anyone help?
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posted by foraneagle2 at 6:43 PM PST - 6 comments
I hate the Firefox Download Manager. How can I bring back the individual download windows from my Mozilla 1.7 days?
posted by punishinglemur at 5:12 PM PST - 2 comments
TaxFilter: Do I meet the "unforeseen circumstances" requirement of the Taxpayers Relief Act for capital gains on my house?
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posted by knave at 5:00 PM PST - 2 comments
Are all chiropractors quacks? Are there good ones and bad ones, or is the whole professional a big scam?
posted by medpt at 4:42 PM PST - 25 comments
Out of boredom, I have decided to cobble together a bare-bones computer (read: pile of wires and parts on a desk). Something seems to be atwitter with the BIOS on the motherboard, and it won't progress beyond the standard bios screen. We are not talking anything life threatening, just the end of my boredom buster, but does anyone know how I might identify the motherboard, and prod the BIOS back to life?
posted by potch at 4:09 PM PST - 3 comments
Why did my dishwasher suddenly start clouding up my glassware? The water hardness didn't change, I didn't change the type or amount of soap.
posted by sixpack at 3:21 PM PST - 12 comments
I'm maid of honor in my sister's wedding in a month. The dress we ordered to match the other bridesmaid's dresses doesn't fit AT ALL.
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posted by LittleMissCranky at 3:00 PM PST - 9 comments
I have a clear childhood memory of being taught that Johnny Appleseed spread ragweed or some other allergy-inducing "weed" in addition to apple trees. Does this ring a bell for anybody else?
posted by NortonDC at 2:35 PM PST - 11 comments
I lived in London for a while and fell in love with the fresh-baked cookies from Sainsbury's. They came in a pack of 5 for .99p (as I remember). There were double chocolate and chocolate chip versions and they always seemed to be soft and delicious. The problem is I just can't seem to find a cookie that stacks up to the ones from Sainsbury's. Anyone have any recommendations? I live in New York City. Or, even better, anyone know the recipe for Sainsbury's cookies? Even just knowing the name of these cookies (if there is one) would help in my quest. Thanks.
posted by nbrier at 2:17 PM PST - 11 comments
Is Microsoft watching me? I was going over the web statistics for my small website and the number one url that traffics my site is located at One Microsoft Way in Redmond Washington. The rest can be explained by friends and family, what's going on here?
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posted by Mark5four0 at 2:16 PM PST - 5 comments
I think my ex-boyfriend may be bipolar. He refuses to admit that, or seek help. His mother and I are both worried, and both want to help, but we don't know what to do. Does anyone have any experience convincing someone to seek help?
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posted by occhiblu at 2:10 PM PST - 29 comments
What is the easiest way, in Windows, to sniff the HTTP (and HTTPS) requests and responses back from the server for an application that won't let you tell it to use a proxy?
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posted by ralawrence at 12:09 PM PST - 9 comments
I need the names of some institutions (schools, hospitals, colleges, whatever) that are at the forefront of medical research in their fields.
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posted by jennyjenny at 11:36 AM PST - 12 comments
Anyone know where I can find MP3s of succesful oral arguments of skilled attorneys? Okay, so I should ask a law librarian, but y'all are just so handy!
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posted by prettyboyfloyd at 10:25 AM PST - 5 comments
I want to consider selling my home myself. There are a number of Internet services that provide multiple-listing services, which should I consider?
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posted by stbalbach at 10:18 AM PST - 3 comments
Is there a program that will send keyboard strokes and mouse clicks to a program that is in the background?
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posted by EvilKenji at 9:45 AM PST - 8 comments
I want to listen to some Podcasts on my way to work. Any recommendations of a good site that has a listings of various shows would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
posted by Maishe at 9:18 AM PST - 8 comments
Yet another voice recorder question: I suddenly have potential access to a reasonable grant (theoretical max. $1000) to purchase a digital voice recorder. I'll be using it primarily for interviews, although recording focus groups are a possibility. I'd like it to be Mac compatible, and hopefully mountable without drivers, so I can just drag the files off of it onto my hard drive.
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posted by carter at 9:17 AM PST - 22 comments
I love
TheDailyWTF and read
/. every day. Without signing up for some members' only site, are there any IT-related blogs/sites you check out daily? Personally I'd love to read about programming (PHP/Python/Ruby/hell even VB script), databases (MySQL/PostgreSQL/MSSQL), and network administration. For general science news, I already check out
Google Sci-Tech News and
Technocrat on a regular basis.
I'm not looking for l33t XHTML/CSS-hacks but rather blogs that discuss emerging programming trends with meaningful discussion. Maybe something that is a mix of
Ask,
Developers, and
IT on Slashdot. If there's a demand for such a site maybe I'll start one. But I'm too lazy to create something if it's already out there.
posted by chime at 9:07 AM PST - 20 comments
Sorry to bug, but this is driving me crazy: I recently read a passage (in a novel, I think) where the narrator or one of the characters says that you can tell a lot about a culture based on what they drank to avoid dehydration before the advent of reliably potable water. (mi)
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posted by audrey the bug at 9:01 AM PST - 17 comments
I have problems sharing new folders on my home LAN. I have an XP pro box, my wife has a WinME laptop.
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posted by signal at 8:49 AM PST - 4 comments
Are free business magazines worth it?
Magazines.com and a couple of other websites are offerring free magazines to "qualified subscribers." Has anyone signed up before? Do these magazines generally have valuable content or are they created just to gather names and addresses for advertisers?
posted by yevge at 8:13 AM PST - 7 comments
Where am I physically going to be in 2 million years. Say I am hypothetically buried in a suburb of Boston, MA tomorrow....where am I physically going to end up? Dissolved into the ocean? A couple hundred feet down in dirt? Some of my ashes might be part of the construction of another animal? Where will I be in 10 million years too. Guesses and educated guesses welcome.
posted by pwally at 8:13 AM PST - 17 comments
I picked up 50 digitech guitar pedal bags at the local thrift store, cheap. My wife is laughing at me as I try to get rid of them.
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posted by mecran01 at 8:04 AM PST - 14 comments
The thought frequently hits me that people I'm talking with seem to "know more than they should" about me or "know more than they're letting on". Without fail, I logically work through the thought and conclude that this is highly unlikely and that I'm just being paranoid. So, while I'm not, in the end, truly concerned that there is any sort of conspiracy afoot, the fact that I keep having these thoughts makes me wonder: how normal is this?
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posted by 4easypayments at 8:00 AM PST - 28 comments
I'm working on a Web site where users will be able to search for events occurring on or around the same day across the World - US, Canada, Mexico, South America, Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia etc. and am looking for a decent way to do such a search.
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posted by bkdelong at 7:34 AM PST - 4 comments
ten-year-old girl, reading at the twelfth grade level, with an abundant interest in the natural sciences. i'm trying to pick good books which blend science, history and cultural perspectives (along the lines of
The Great Influenza,
Krakatoa and
Guns Germs and Steel) that won't be too grown-up for her. despite her reading comprehension and general intelligence, she is just a little girl (with the short attention span of most kids) and one who spends most of her time in rural appalachia. i have asked my children's librarian, but i hope y'all have some suggestions, too.
posted by crush-onastick at 7:24 AM PST - 43 comments
I copied a slab of text to add to an email but before I pasted it I then copied the intended email address. Is there someway to retrieve the text ? Or is it lost forever??
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posted by peacay at 7:19 AM PST - 10 comments
The debate surrounding
this post on Infoshop led me to a series of reflections on my personal choices. I am a 25 year old woman, and one of the reasons I have not had a baby, and probably won't, is because I don't want to be forced, as the Infoshop server owners have been forced, to make a choice between the well-being of a dependent family and my personal values. Have any other MeFi users taken their political circumstances into account when deciding whether or not to have a family?
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posted by By The Grace of God at 5:59 AM PST - 16 comments
I have a CD with some software on it. When I copy the files from that CD, the size of the files on my hard drive are far greater than the capacity of the 700mb CD it came from!
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posted by viama at 2:06 AM PST - 13 comments
March 29
What sort of averages (GPAs) do top graduate programs in the humanities in the English-speaking world look for?
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posted by ori at 9:06 PM PST - 13 comments
I have tried everything. Why can't I find that painting of Shatner and Nimoy as The Lone Ranger and Tonto?
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posted by punkbitch at 8:27 PM PST - 3 comments
My dryer is dead, and based on some google searching I suspect it may be my thermal fuse. I want to test it with a multimeter, but I can not figure out how on earth to disconnect the leads.
I am guessing there is some trick, but I can't figure it out and I don't want to keep yanking on the wires and have them break on me.
Is there a trick to disconnecting the leads, based on the second picture on
this page?
posted by AhBook at 7:58 PM PST - 6 comments
How to find a roommate: I need to find a place to live. I've always lived with friends, but that's not an option right now. I'm looking for a room on craigslist and bostonapartments.com but pickings are slim. I feel like there must be some other big sites out there, but I don't know what they are, and googling only turns up paid sites. Where else should I be looking?
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posted by duck at 6:46 PM PST - 10 comments
You learn a new word, and suddenly you see that word everywhere. Or you have a new experience, and suddenly it seems the media is filled with other people talking about that same experience. Is there a word for this phenomenon?
posted by Badmichelle at 6:17 PM PST - 27 comments
Is there such a software critter that one can keep an offline (read completely private) blog or journal, readable only to the author, in HTML format stylee, with features that allow for easy input of pictures, links, backups, etc ...?
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posted by Wulfgar! at 5:16 PM PST - 23 comments
I saw a simple, but stunning screensaver on a Mac, which was a slow zoom into images, and I'm trying to find something similar for XP. Thanks!
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posted by tomble at 4:51 PM PST - 11 comments
GarlicFilter: I have a tremendous, if petty, dilemma: Everytime I go to ol' Ess-A-Bagel here in NYC on 21st/1st (best bagels in the country, hands down) and eat a delicious, creamery bagel, I want to buy a few more Everything or Garlic bagels to take home. Problem is, they stink my bag up something terrible.
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posted by yonation at 4:10 PM PST - 7 comments
What is the best bass for a camping trip, short of an upright? I have one, but can't haul and house it in the woods. I also have an acoustic/electric guitar style Washburn bass, but it provides no bottom whatsoever.
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posted by wsg at 4:05 PM PST - 10 comments
On Good Friday, I came to the sorrowful realisation that the battery in my 12" PowerBook was kaput. How can I make it rise again?
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posted by docgonzo at 4:05 PM PST - 8 comments
To those (2 year/4 year) college instructors out there: what experiences have you had with "course tools" to allow students to electronically post assignments?
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posted by beelzbubba at 3:45 PM PST - 14 comments
I have a need for porn. I've been tasked with doing an 'adult' site and while I have no ethical problem with it, I've never done one before and am having a hard time finding inspiration.
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posted by cedar at 3:35 PM PST - 19 comments
I need some ideas for a finish for a semi-rough interior wall plaster made from sand, portland cement, and masonry cement. It's pretty beautiful already...
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posted by gingembre at 3:15 PM PST - 3 comments
Somehow, I've managed to take a liking to haute couture. As in, fashion design has begun to interest me greatly. I am seriously thinking of a career path in it, or at least willing to pursue it to see how much interest I can maintain beyond, "that's really neat looking." Some basic, naive questions lay within.
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posted by geoff. at 1:38 PM PST - 3 comments
In my entire life, I have never had a good dream (that I can remember). What can I do about this? Every morning I awake feeling like I've just endured an extremely intense work out. These nightmares terrify me and are incredibly vivid. It feels like I am dreaming all night long, without ascending and descending through all of the stages of sleep. Is it possible to get too much REM sleep? If so, what causes this? Any sort of suggestion, outside of recommending therapy (done that), would be helpful.
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posted by crapulent at 1:20 PM PST - 21 comments
So I'm interested in finally using my iChat to meet and hang out with folks online, as well as use my iSight for something more than scanning books. Does anybody know of fun ways to meet folks in iChat? Perhaps a community or two?
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posted by NewGear at 1:09 PM PST - 3 comments
So I bought a TV, and now I need an entertainment unit in which to hide it so that it's not the focal point of my living room and so I don't have to look at something that resembles a big ugly dead eye when not in use. I'm having trouble finding one that meets my super-specific criteria.
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posted by orange swan at 12:54 PM PST - 14 comments
I need help organizing my digital life! I am an academic who works on three different XP computers...
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posted by LarryC at 11:31 AM PST - 10 comments
How do Premier League football coaches keep their training sessions fresh? It can't be easy training every day throughout a nine month season. How do they structure their sessions? What drills are most productive?
posted by TheManticore at 11:09 AM PST - 0 comments
Does anybody know of any websites that offer pretty comprehensive categorized lists of summer programs, like upward bound programs, sports camps, learning tours, etc., available for high school age students. All the searches I can think of haven't produced any. Thanks
posted by rabbus at 10:52 AM PST - 3 comments
Need to lose weight: How can I stop thinking of food as comfort, as a reward, or as the main event of any celebration?
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posted by CaptApollo at 10:49 AM PST - 41 comments
When shooting photos of the protest outside Schiavo's hospice in Pinellas, I encountered a distinctively ornamented religious group. I've never seen anything like this before, and Google is inconclusive -- an ID would be appreciated. Pictures inside.
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posted by cmyk at 10:35 AM PST - 11 comments
My wife and I are applying for a home loan. I recently started my own business while she has a normal job. Should we choose a "Stated Income" or a "No Income Verification" loan? Our loan broker suggests using a Stated Income loan by adding our two real incomes together and saying it is her wages. This seems like lying to us....what do you think? A No Income Verification loan is $10,000 more....
posted by Instrumental at 10:31 AM PST - 6 comments
I'm getting married in October, and our honeymoon is a long leisurely drive up to Massachusetts. We know we'll be stopping at Niagara Falls for one night, but are there any other places we should stop and see, weird roadside attractions, etc? We've already been to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland...any roads less traveled to consider?
posted by agregoli at 9:58 AM PST - 33 comments
Have you ever driven/operated an ice cream truck, coffee cart, burrito wagon, or the like? Was it a fun way to spend some time or just mind-numbing? Did you make any dough?
posted by gottabefunky at 9:46 AM PST - 13 comments
Anybody know a by-mail source for hickory nuts?
And are they worth it?
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posted by Rash at 9:45 AM PST - 4 comments
Basic physics. Sitting on a 2,5m (8.2ft) high boulder without shock-absorbing footwear, should I prefer jumping down 2m (6.6ft) onto a flat rock or the full 2,5m onto a softer forest surface?
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posted by Akeem at 8:46 AM PST - 14 comments
I'm taking a road trip to the south this weekend. What are some can't miss places -- for eating, shopping, experiencing, or simply tons of fun -- in and around Nashville, Memphis, or Little Rock?
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posted by brad! at 7:38 AM PST - 12 comments
What's the best way to get the best possible seats for a concert at the last minute?
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posted by Dreama at 7:25 AM PST - 15 comments
Has anyone ever found a resort with a reasonably large and varied out-of-season ski area? Anywhere in the world that isn't outrageously inaccessible would do...
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posted by Decani at 6:35 AM PST - 9 comments
I need help researching the effects of interlinked web pages in search results...
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posted by patgas at 6:33 AM PST - 3 comments
I'll be in Pittsburgh, PA, for a few days next week on business. Any places I should visit, things to do, places to eat, drink, etc.?
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posted by trox at 6:15 AM PST - 19 comments
Lately I've been hearing from people who support themselves on a low budget doing seasonal work part of the year: ski bums in Canada who plant trees up north in the summer, punks here in Pittsburgh who work the cranberry harvest out east each fall. I'm curious about this sort of job.
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posted by nebulawindphone at 6:03 AM PST - 13 comments
Bought a house last year (1901) with a lot of old ceilings and woodcraft. Some parts really need a good renovation. Are there any good resources for these specific operations?
posted by mailhans at 4:05 AM PST - 6 comments
I'm from Arizona, and am going to Anchorage this summer to work. What's the cheapest way to get there?
An Orbitz search says the cheapest flight is $497; are there other, cheaper alternatives? I'm open to driving up to 5 hours (i.e. Albuquerque, Las Vegas, Phoenix, etc.) if it will get me a cheaper flight, and also open to alternative methods of transportation (renting a car, train, etc.), as long as they get me there relatively quickly.
posted by joshuaconner at 1:52 AM PST - 5 comments
I often feel that there are tons of books interesting books I want to/need to read, exhibitions to see, websites to visit, movies to watch, news items to research etc. just to keep in touch with the world and not enough time whilst handling everyday life. How do you deal with this feeling or the problem in general without panicking about it?
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posted by keijo at 12:38 AM PST - 47 comments
BeautyFilter: Is there a marked increase in the quality of salon or department store makeup/hair/skin products over grocery and drug store items that makes the higher price worth it?
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posted by lychee at 12:05 AM PST - 10 comments
March 28
Does working out increase you testosterone level?
posted by drezdn at 9:19 PM PST - 8 comments
Can anyone suggest good PHP books or existing scripts that can help me successfully parse RSS 1.0, 2.0 and Atom 0.3 feeds, then save them to a MySQL database?
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posted by jeanmari at 9:15 PM PST - 3 comments
As a young person with a pretty much blank credit history, I'm looking for ways to start building solid credit for the future (more inside)
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posted by ubernostrum at 8:12 PM PST - 22 comments
How can I control the amount of time before my G5 sleeps while at the log-in screen? My computer has two user accounts, both of which are set to never sleep. I'd like to set things up so that the computer will go to sleep 10 minutes after logout. Detailed steps for any sort of Terminal wonkery would be greatly appreciated.
posted by boombot at 8:11 PM PST - 3 comments
So how often do people object before the fatal I-do's are spoken at weddings? Either shouting something like "Ellllaaaaine!" or the more understated going up and conferring with the clergyperson and celebrants.
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posted by Mercaptan at 7:25 PM PST - 20 comments
Does taking multivitamins every day help your body maintain fitness, especially when you are in your 20s? How about if you excersize every other day? What else are multivitamin supplements good for?
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posted by Dean Keaton at 7:17 PM PST - 11 comments
Are there any brands of eyeglass frames with an extended size range for those of us with large head and high nose bridge? Or a source for custom frames at a reasonable price?
posted by Jackson at 6:56 PM PST - 4 comments
I'm getting married on Saturday. In Michigan. And, well, there's this baskeball game on....
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posted by dpx.mfx at 6:27 PM PST - 24 comments
Ever since I've had a PC I've either had to endure the MS Sound scheme or some amatuer wavs that were horrific. What I'm looking for are pleasant sounds that say like, when you have a critical error, you hear a chorus vocal by Enya instead of "DING!"
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posted by Hands of Manos at 6:15 PM PST - 6 comments
What recent song features a female vocalist, with lyrics like
"The better you feel / The more you'll heal / The better you'll be / The more you'll see"?
posted by rwhe at 6:01 PM PST - 3 comments
Does anyone know if there is an easy way to change the product key for a copy of Windows XP Pro SP2 that has already been activated? [MI]
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posted by sixdifferentways at 5:07 PM PST - 8 comments
Boyband/LawFilter: Is it fair for manufactured bands (NSync, American Idol-ers, etc) to have questionable contracts when they sign to a label? (+)
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posted by evadery at 3:25 PM PST - 16 comments
One-way airfare is expensive -- it can be up to
five times as expensive as a normal round-trip flight during certain times of the year. What I'd like to know is this: can I skip the return flight on one of these cheaper round-trip tickets, or would that be asking for a visit from the friendly folks of the TSA?
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posted by moonbiter at 2:48 PM PST - 20 comments
I have a Microsoft Word document template containing many drop-down form field elements. How can I get Word to advance to and display the choices for the next drop-down automatically when a selection is made?
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posted by teleskiving at 2:25 PM PST - 0 comments
What's the most efficient way to provide a MeFi-style x new comments count for a MeFi-style chat board?
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posted by bonaldi at 2:22 PM PST - 7 comments
A while back, there was a funny little list of the hardest email addresses to communicate to someone else. I can't remember specifics, but things like: bobatyahoodotcom@gmail.com, etc. Anyone know where to find this list?
posted by provocateur at 12:32 PM PST - 9 comments
I had a minor accident on my road bike this weekend, and fell over whilst moving at a very low speed. Do I need a new helmet?
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posted by netsirk at 12:00 PM PST - 13 comments
I'm about to get a roommate, and she's warned me that she tends to play her music loud, and late (she's a bartender, so she works until about 2am). I'd like to buy her some cordless headphones; any recommendations?
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posted by littleme at 11:38 AM PST - 14 comments
Other than using sun screen, what should I be doing to keep my skin healthy as I age? What do all these anti-aging products actually do, anyhow?
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posted by croutonsupafreak at 11:13 AM PST - 13 comments
I have a hard drive in an external enclosure. Recently, it (sometimes) has been making disturbing noises. Is my hard drive dying, or is it my enclosure?
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posted by TheIrreverend at 11:06 AM PST - 16 comments
What is the best way to sell personal jewelry or metals? Specifically I have a platinum band that I've had for a few years and havent worn in ages that I'd like to part with. Is there a fixed value market for this similar to gold? How do you prevent getting a rotten deal from a reseller? Does anyone have personal experience with this? Really, what's the best way to go about doing this? Thanks as always for your responses.
posted by Peter H at 11:00 AM PST - 4 comments
I've been trying to find green Spanish (or goobers) peanuts, in the shell, that I can boil at home. I've searched the web and found many sites that have them green out of the shell. I live in Florida and every so often my grocery store will have the big Virginia peanuts. However, they are not as sweet. I'd even take green in the shell Valencias. Anyone know where I can find some?
posted by DeAnna at 10:44 AM PST - 2 comments
Why is dental insurance so lousy? My wife and I have managed to get decent (though too expensive) health coverage, but the only dental coverage we can find provides only a few hundred more dollars coverage per year than you pay for it. And it's not just a self-employment thing: when I worked at a pharmaceutical-related company, the medical and vision coverage was fine but the dental was similarly lousy. Is there some structural reason for this? You'd think some company would offer better service in the hope the masses would flock to it.
posted by languagehat at 10:40 AM PST - 14 comments
I'm on the lookout for video coverage of Robert Plant's keynote at SXSW this year. SXSW's website has
some video coverage, but nothing involving Plant. If video is completely non-existant, I suppose audio will do. Any ideas of where I can find this? Thanks.
posted by nitsuj at 10:35 AM PST - 2 comments
I’ll be launching a new t-shirt site over the next several months and am looking for insight into what makes a good shirt (our fearless leader, for example,
likes American Apparel shirts and the designs from
Protoculture,
nerdnyc and
glarkware). So what do you look for? Comfort (cotton? cotton-poly blends?)? Funny or clever slogans (you bet your ass there’s a difference between funny and clever (and witty, too))? Artistic value? Originality? Retro styling (or do you think retro's going back to the grave)? What’s your favorite t-shirt? Where and how did you find the shirt/seller?
Please don't get all riled up about "self-linking": I emailed #1 twice for an OK and got no response and of course am not including any link (here or in my profile).
posted by Sinner at 10:13 AM PST - 20 comments
Any ESL 'graduates' out there? What did you love or hate about your tutors? What should I attempt, or avoid, in our first few meetings?
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posted by pants at 10:08 AM PST - 7 comments
WinXP, limited or no connectivity, wired box. Can't connect, tried everything I can think of, pretty close to trashing the whole install and starting over.
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posted by clubfoote at 9:49 AM PST - 11 comments
I'm going to be making the food (a table of hors d'oeuvre type stuff for about 200 people) for my university's student art show opening. I'm pretty much stuck at hummus. Ideas/recipes/tips?
posted by cilantro at 9:00 AM PST - 19 comments
Have perceptions of time changed in the last few hundred years? Did people used to speak more casually about periods of time? I'm reading Jane Eyre, and Charlotte Bronte uses "ten minutes" in an odd way. I suspect she means (by today's standards) 30 seconds. Is this sloppy writing, cultural difference or what?
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posted by grumblebee at 8:56 AM PST - 20 comments
Neotones: As I understand it, a note is not a pure frequency but a combination of a prominent frequency and various overtones, which are multiples of the fundamental frequency, of diminishing contribution. Is there a device, that can generate alienesque tones, where one can freely manipulate the various overtones?
posted by Gyan at 8:49 AM PST - 13 comments
I would like to set aside initially a modest amount of money for young children to be used at least 10 years out or much later, for college expenses or some other use. What do you recommend for the best return? Will entertain a small to modst risk.
posted by terrier319 at 7:38 AM PST - 11 comments
I have not paid for glasses in years, and was shocked to learn that my glass lenses (-8 nearsighted...) are going to cost me $400. I have only heard of one other person who ever paid that much, so maybe I'm just looking to whine and pity myself, but any other empty walleted blind-ish folk out there?
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posted by mrs.pants at 5:27 AM PST - 28 comments
Every once in a while, my iTunes just seems to start playing without any reason (I have it running in the background with no music playing). This seems to happen when I mis-type something, leading me to think there's maybe some weird key-combo set to "Start playing music in iTunes", but there's no such setting possible, afaik. There's nothing in the CD-Drive, either. If it's any help, i'm on a Mac mini.
posted by slater at 5:00 AM PST - 6 comments
Well, one might be Cultural Studies, at least. I've had a couple of ideas for papers in the last couple days but I am having trouble digging up some preliminary research sources on them and the offerings at my university library are a bit meagre.
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posted by synecdoche at 12:36 AM PST - 16 comments
What are the best general purpose computing/tech-related forums? Though people here have been remarkably enlightening when faced with tech type questions I don't want to constantly use up my one question per week asking about such banalities as browser problems and php CMSes and suchlike.
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posted by uk_giffo at 12:06 AM PST - 10 comments
March 27
There's a breed of software which you point at a database and which then generates an add/edit/delete web interface for all the tables. (examples
a,
b) I've seen a four-letter acronym used to refer to it, but I can't come up with it and I'm spending way too much time surfing to find it. Help!
posted by Tubes at 11:21 PM PST - 10 comments
How can I obtain a copy of Eduardo Paolozzi's short film
The History of Nothing for home viewing in the United States? Any format is acceptable.
posted by eschatfische at 10:24 PM PST - 2 comments
What sort of features would you look for in a local music web site? The standard reviews and show listings are pretty common sense, but can you all think of any other features that would be appealing for a local music community website?
posted by jackofsaxons at 10:22 PM PST - 12 comments
What is the rationale behind television shows (mostly older ones) and some movies listing the actors in the program in "groups"? Usually they list the main ones as "starring" or "costarring", but sometimes there's also some people that are "featured", and some go so far as to list someone at the end with a "With...". Something like "Special Guest Star" is obvious, but I'm curious as to the rules for how they pick who is a star, who is "featured", and who is barely a "with".
posted by robbie01 at 9:54 PM PST - 9 comments
I've used standard MS Backup with DLT and it's really getting old (just snapped a tape and lost a 5 hour backup session).
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posted by nj_subgenius at 9:46 AM PST - 7 comments
My dog nearly died this weekend after my vet discovered he was bleeding internally. It turns out the culprit was rat poison. I live in an urban area (Chicago), where the alleys are heavily baited. How would I go about lodging a complaint to the city or is there any other recourse I can take?
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posted by zombiebunny at 8:03 AM PST - 24 comments
How does IE decide whether to stream a media file or download it fully before opening it? How can I get players other than Windows Media Player to properly stream mp3s with a browser click?
posted by Pretty_Generic at 7:41 AM PST - 12 comments
What is the best (easiest) way to convert an IFO DVD file to MPEG4 which I am prepping to get something like
this for my home network.
posted by benjh at 4:46 AM PST - 4 comments
Does anyone know how to wind the bobbin on a Singer 328K sewing machine? Can anyone give me simple instructions please?
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posted by sconbie at 3:45 AM PST - 10 comments
Come Easter, I've been listening to a lot of religious music, not least Bach's passions. It got me thinking as to whether there was any art totally outside of faith that was equally sublime. (Disclaimer: I am an atheist)
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posted by Jongo at 2:52 AM PST - 27 comments
I find myself with an afternoon to kill in Philadelphia. I'd like to see City Hall (the whole Rocky thing), and partake in an artery-clogging cheesesteak. Is there anything else in the City Hall vicinity that I should take a look at? What's the best cheesesteak place near City Hall (Pat's seems to be far in South Phili)? Any travel advice on transport in Philadelphia and between downtown and the Wissahickon/East Falls area? Any other general input also appreciated.
posted by ruwan at 12:15 AM PST - 14 comments
March 26
Firefox question: I recently bought a new computer and want to transfer the Firefox settings from the old computer, namely the bookmarks. What file(s) should I copy over to my /Firefox folder in the new computer?
posted by zardoz at 10:52 PM PST - 6 comments
Why do two different radio stations sometimes have the exact same song playing, often in complete sync, or only a measure off?
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posted by lazaruslong at 10:01 PM PST - 24 comments
Why was (is) 666 the number of the beast? Revelation says that the number of the beast is six hundred threescore and six; I know the verse, but I'm curious as to why that's the number and not, say, 555, 637, or 8.
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posted by Yelling At Nothing at 9:02 PM PST - 27 comments
I remember a few years ago I purchased "Battery" energy drink at a 7-11 in Ontario. I haven't seen the drink anywhere since, but I do know it exists
here. Does anyone know where in Ontario I can find it?
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posted by Sonic_Molson at 8:30 PM PST - 1 comments
Will a glycolic resurfacing peel make a tan go away faster, or are there proven methods to reduce an accidental tan? How long does a one time tan last?
posted by Mean Mr. Bucket at 6:37 PM PST - 4 comments
What are your opinions of the ethics of spyware and adware? ..and do you think they play an important role in e-commerce?
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posted by lemonfridge at 6:31 PM PST - 14 comments
I'm in dire need of a chocolate icing recipe. I know the basic ingredients but need the ratios. 2 cakes await!
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posted by Lord_Pall at 4:40 PM PST - 8 comments
I'm trying to get into reading again, and am looking for fiction authors who write well-defined characters and seem genuinely to like people.
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posted by Tuwa at 2:21 PM PST - 55 comments
Do editors choose and assign feature news coverage based on archetypal stories, and, if so, how many types are there?
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posted by merlinmann at 11:22 AM PST - 11 comments
I loved Scorched Earth. I want a networked version of Scorch for Windows. I think
Scorched 3d is nearly unplayable as-is, though I love the concept. I want something like
xscorch but for Windows. Something like
Pocket Tanks, but networked. Any ideas?
posted by jojopizza at 10:40 AM PST - 8 comments
Is there any freeware (W2K) that I can use to annotate a movie clip? I just want to stick a copyright string at the bottom of the picture (for the whole clip).
posted by Ferrari328 at 8:12 AM PST - 6 comments
What's the coolest thing I can buy to keep my kids entertained on a 15 hour road trip to Oregon, for $200? I will probably try to find a decent portable dvd player but it occured to me that there might be a portable gaming system or something that would improve the bang/buck ratio.
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posted by craniac at 7:37 AM PST - 30 comments
Scientists (and others) are using modified inkjet printers to print a
wide range of really nifty things, such as working electronic circuits, 3D architectural models, and living tissue like organs and skin. My question is, do you have to modify one yourself, or are they for sale? Where would I get an inkjet printer that was capable of printing out a layer of resin or wax or whatever? The only one I can find is the kind that prints out
edible birthday cake photos.
posted by RylandDotNet at 7:32 AM PST - 9 comments
In WinXP SP2, I can no longer drag and drop files from one folder to another, or from Explorer onto applications. Nothing happens, either right- or left-clicking. To move files around I have to cut and paste.
Any idea how to get my drag and drop back?
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 5:25 AM PST - 3 comments
I haven't bought a CD in over 6 months - not because I'm downloading them, but because I can't find anything I like. Help me find more music?
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posted by Orange Goblin at 2:20 AM PST - 47 comments
Does anyone have a tried & tested way of getting curry stains out of clothing please?
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posted by kenchie at 12:04 AM PST - 7 comments
March 25
Does anyone have a good recipe for mexican hot chocolate that involves melting cocoa butter with ...ahem, smoking tobacco?
posted by hautenegro at 10:56 PM PST - 29 comments
Is it possible to implement full-text substring table searches in MySQL?
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posted by esch at 9:39 PM PST - 10 comments
I've finally decided to breakdown and buy a T42 Thinkpad to replace my quickly fading HP desktop. I'm so confused and I think that I've screwed up.
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posted by Juicylicious at 8:55 PM PST - 8 comments
My friend Lisa is a brilliant young woman in a terrible professional situation. She has been working at her job for the last three years---everyone there acknowledges her for the talented person she is. She has been promoted four times---she is now manager of research and ad sales marketing---and she still makes the same money she made when she started AS AN ASSISTANT. I want desperately for her to find a job that pays her what she deserves, but it's hard for her to find opportunities that speak to her skill level and current position. She's tried monster.com and many other job sites. What else can she do to find good meaningful work that will pay her what she deserves? THANKS!
posted by adrober at 8:24 PM PST - 18 comments
I'm moving into a new place and beginning the search for furniture. Anyone have any favorite sources of good deals on good furniture in LA? How close to a gigantic selection of good quality/looking stuff at garage-sale prices can one get in this city?
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posted by sirion at 6:51 PM PST - 11 comments
we are thinking about finally getting away for a belated winter/spring vacation ... to southern costa rica or perhaps to bali - i still think sri lanka sounds wonderful - can anyone speak to the conditions in either locations in early mid/apri? more inside
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posted by specialk420 at 6:21 PM PST - 5 comments
I am trying to book a flight for my honeymoon. I live (and will be departing from) Toronto, and there is a stop in NYC. The flight is scheduled to arrive at La Guardia at 9am and my connecting flight is scheduled to depart at 12:30pm. I do not travel very frequently, so I am not sure how long it will take to get out of the airport at LGA (customs, baggage, etc), how far it is between airports, how bad traffic is on a Sunday morning/afternoon in NYC, and how long it will take to check in at JFK. How can I determine whether the 3.5 hours I have are a long enough time? I don't want to book this flight until I am reasonably sure. Under normal circumstances, I would be adventurous and take the chance, but I don't want to risk any problems for the honeymoon!
posted by omair at 5:06 PM PST - 14 comments
Does anyone know what the song "This Woman's Work" by Kate Bush is about?
posted by Muffpub at 4:59 PM PST - 2 comments
Has the Terri Schiavo situation led you to tell a loved one how long you'd wish to to be kept alive if you're completely incapacitated? If so, how long?
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posted by bruceyeah at 4:11 PM PST - 36 comments
I have a feeling that somewhere online is a place where I can easily create those little buttons (or banners or whatever they are called) that live at the corners of everyone's blogs. If you don't know what I'm talking about,
click here for an example.
What I'm imagining is a site where I can put in my text, select colors, then quickly create one of these. I'm sure I could do it in Photoshop, but the little tool I'm imagining seems so likely to exist that I thought I'd start by asking here.
By the way, what DO you call those little things?
posted by abbyladybug at 2:34 PM PST - 9 comments
Let's say I want to throw a party in some disused (or, ideally, distressed) office space in Manhattan. How can I find some, and how much would I have to pay? Is it even possible to rent office space by the night for a party?
posted by paul_smatatoes at 2:33 PM PST - 10 comments
I just received a load of great records from my parents. Of course, I don't have anything to play them on. I have a stereo receiver that I'd like to plug the record player into. Basically I'm not looking for something top-of-the-line. I just want something decent and/or used. Please see extended....
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posted by derekislost at 11:58 AM PST - 13 comments
Pre-industrial age: the Egyptians in Africa, Chinese in Asia, the Aztecs/Incas/Mayans in South America.
Why did an equivalently advanced civilization never develop in North America?
posted by event at 11:29 AM PST - 37 comments
Does anyone know where I can find a '50s-era Canon 35mm f/1.8 or the later f/2 rangefinder lens in good to excellent condition?
posted by Il Furioso at 11:14 AM PST - 11 comments
I have a mountain bike on a resistance roller that I use to workout, and I also use a heart rate monitor to keep my heart rate at 145. If I workout in a cycling position with my hands on the handlebars, it takes much more effort to maintain 145 than if I sit upright with my hands by my side.
Why is this, and does this mean my upright workout is less effective than my bent over one, even though I'm maintaining the same heart rate?
posted by forallmankind at 10:04 AM PST - 13 comments
I'm a pretty good balancer (e.g. can stand on one leg for extended periods of time without falling over). However, I've noticed that my balancing ability degrades significantly in the dark (really dark, not just dim). My theory is that it's harder to keep your balance when your eyes don't have something to focus on. Thoughts?
posted by noahv at 9:48 AM PST - 23 comments
If I go to a store, and 'inadvertently' write out a check, useing a pen that has disappearing ink, what will happen when the check can't be processed?
I know that with the new 'Check 21' program, the actual checks aren't sent to my bank, but if the ink disappears before the check gets scanned by the stores' bank, what happens?
posted by whoda at 9:45 AM PST - 18 comments
A friend has asked me to find out if a particular title she wants to use for a short story has ever previously been used in published story. I have no idea how to find this out, or if it's even possible to find out, so I am asking you guys. If you wanted to title a story, say, "Mr. Jones Learns to Pogo," and you wanted to absolutely sure that title hadn't been used before, what would you do? (Personally, I could care less if my titles have been used before, but my friend is a bit obsessive--and quite brilliant.)
Thanks.
Lustra
posted by lustra at 9:38 AM PST - 6 comments
Where can I find a thermometer which will accurately measure infrared heat in 10 seconds or so, and reads in the 300-1000 degrees Fahrenheit?
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posted by daver at 9:26 AM PST - 10 comments
Best way to transfer Groupwise calendar items into iCal without a PDA?
posted by neilkod at 9:03 AM PST - 2 comments
I'm in NYC/Brooklyn, and we're looking to buy a cheap used car for the first time. Advice?
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posted by BT at 7:34 AM PST - 11 comments
I'll be in Memphis for the first time April 8 - 10. Any recommendations for off the beaten path places to hear some good blues? Bonus points for acoustic sets.
posted by yoga at 5:37 AM PST - 12 comments
What are some things once thought of as mythic, legendary, or folk tales, but know thought or known to be real?
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posted by orthogonality at 1:09 AM PST - 44 comments
March 24
Does anyone have recommendations for good software/methods to block certain overly addictive websites for say, the revision period prior to exams?
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posted by Mossy at 9:58 PM PST - 10 comments
One of my bright fourth-grade students asked me something she said has been bugging her for a while: "Why don't people have lines? Like in the cartoons?" Not as in lines of dialogue; lines in the drawing, to mark our feature.
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posted by argybarg at 8:59 PM PST - 45 comments
I'm a pretty tall guy, and the chair I have doesn't adjust high enough. Is there any way (I was thinking of some sort of caster extensions) to make my existing standard office chair a couple of inches taller?
posted by cameldrv at 8:37 PM PST - 3 comments
Is there any good Wedding planning software or web services out there? I'm looking for something like Business Plan Pro or Basecamp, but for weddings.
posted by Jairus at 7:23 PM PST - 4 comments
Who makes pants that can take a beating and still be comfortable? I have a few specific requirements....
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posted by ordu at 7:09 PM PST - 9 comments
My 9-month old puppy has been diagnosed with ehrlichia. Has anyone had experience with or knowledge of this disease, treating it, and the fatality rates? :(
posted by about_time at 7:09 PM PST - 6 comments
Today's article about art
snuck into a museum reminded me of another story about a sign
snuck onto a highway. Does anyone know of similar stories?
posted by cribcage at 7:07 PM PST - 18 comments
What are news anchors scribbing down on their pieces of paper at the end of a broadcast?
posted by Stan Chin at 6:57 PM PST - 16 comments
Today, the image of a horrifying candy from my childhood flashed into my mind, and I felt a tremendous urge to get my hands on some. I have no idea what it was called.
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posted by leapingsheep at 5:45 PM PST - 23 comments
Babelfilter: Machine translation still sucks. Why isn't there a system that allows members of the public to collectively help improve the quality of computer-produced translations?
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posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 4:52 PM PST - 11 comments
I want to buy a 35mm camera and learn how to develop film. Should I buy a new one? A used workhorse? Tell me.
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posted by mudpuppie at 3:40 PM PST - 25 comments
stop reading my email filter; I type an email, I send said email to person X, I immediately delete said email from sent folder, and I delete said email from the deleted folder. I can no longer see said email. Now the fun begins! Fast forward 24 hours. Person Y tells me that he is looking at my screen and said email and can quote from email.
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posted by busboy789 at 2:23 PM PST - 21 comments
My husband and I want to take a 7-9 day vacation in July-August. I am looking at La Isla Mujeres in Mexico and want to know if anyone has been there and what you thought of it. Also, do you have places you love in Mexico? We are looking for off the beaten path places. We are into hiking, snorkeling, ruins, stuff like that. (Not the Cancun type of people.) It must be on the water.
posted by aacheson at 2:22 PM PST - 21 comments
How much money would I need to bring if I'd want to spend 6 months without work in 1) New York, NY 2) Portland, OR, 3) Toronto, Canada? The amount should cover all expences, from housing and food to beer and fun.
posted by mr.marx at 1:37 PM PST - 28 comments
I'm going to Phoenix for a couple of days in June and will need to rent a car. My only problem is I'm 22 and most rental car companies have strict policies about renting to those under 25. Those that will rent to those under 25 (Thrifty and Dollar), charge excessive surcharges ($20 a day when the rental is $25 a day). Is there any way of getting around this?
posted by mhaw at 12:58 PM PST - 18 comments
The latest silly (but harmless if you don't take it seriously) method of trying to classify people's personalities is
Popstrology. (Also see
this website which has a more extensive list of songs, plus the UK #1's, but no analysis.) But... I was not born in the US or the UK--I was born in a US Army Hospital in Germany. I want to figure out what the #1 songs were in my birthday in Germany, or on Armed Forces Radio. I googled, and was able to come up with the current German #1's, but not anything in the past. So I turn to you, O Wise Denizens of AxMe. I figure other MeFi'ers who weren't born in the US or UK might like to participate in the goofiness, as well.
posted by Shoeburyness at 12:24 PM PST - 6 comments
I was in a white room with florescent lights, writing on a yellow sheet of paper, when suddenly, I could no longer see anything I focused on.
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posted by stray at 11:51 AM PST - 26 comments
I have in mind a device: it is portable (battery-powered); you plug pen/jump/thumb drive 'A' into it, and then plug pen drive 'B' into it. Press a button, and 'A' is mirrored to 'B'. Does this device exist?
posted by everichon at 11:36 AM PST - 4 comments
Do
The Rules, Why Men Love Bitches, and
He's Not That Into You have any truth to them? There are so many out there now, and they all seem to have the same basic message - I'm wondering if anyone here actually has read them, thinks they are valid, or has other experiences/opinions? I'm especially curious as to what men think.
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posted by mygothlaundry at 10:38 AM PST - 52 comments
How do I keep my one-year-old cat from making a racket outside my bedroom door in the mornings?
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posted by Item at 9:59 AM PST - 21 comments
I've turned my office onto
Basecamp in a massive way and now I'm on a quest for other web services that share information beautifully like this.
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posted by Vaska at 8:53 AM PST - 6 comments
im putting together a compilation of songs for a trip to the beach next weekend. any suggestions?
posted by mudhouse at 8:46 AM PST - 36 comments
BOOKS. In 1988, Frederic Raphael published "List of Books" -- a guide to essential reading on a variety of topics (economics, history, philosophy). But it's almost 20 years old. Does anyone know of a similar updated list (equally trustworthy and well researched), either on-line or in book form?
posted by nancoix at 7:53 AM PST - 4 comments
Where's the best place to sell "vintage" books, and how do I find out about pricing them?
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posted by tommyc at 7:35 AM PST - 9 comments
Theoretically: what are the legalities of reselling something I bought off of a website which was later shut down for copyright infringement. The first example that comes to mind is about selling DJ Danger Mouse's Grey Album on eBay. Would I get nailed for this, either by the men in suits or by eBay?
posted by michaelkuznet at 5:53 AM PST - 15 comments
I run a popular regional community site that I believe was banned by Google due to practices of the former owner of the domain name. Yahoo!, MSN and other search engines send users my site's way - but not Google since the Googlebot won't visit. It's as if my site doesn't exist as far as searchers on Google are concerned.
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posted by kmartino at 5:46 AM PST - 13 comments
Need quick advice! My girlfriend and I looked at an apartment last night on Sickles Street off Nagle Avenue, a few blocks below Dyckman street, in Inwood, Manhattan. We've been advised before to stay west of Broadway in Inwood. Can anyone comment on the area?
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posted by edlundart at 5:38 AM PST - 6 comments
So, my new roommate brought a cat with her, and she's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. I want her to eat wet food as well as dry (she seems to love it), but everytime I open the can I retch. Has anybody found a way around this?
posted by jon_kill at 5:01 AM PST - 26 comments
Yesterday morning, when I tried to collect my Gmail messages, Thunderbird told me the server had reponded "Lockdown in Sector 4!". I couldn't get into Gmail (POP3 or webmail interface) all yesterday and all today; it's come good tonight. Has this happened to anybody else? If so, have you ever found out why?
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posted by flabdablet at 3:51 AM PST - 5 comments
Is there a way to stop XP's built in CD burning tools (I'm currently burning stright from Media Player) leaving a small gap between tracks? Failing that, cheap/free software that will?
posted by monkey closet at 1:17 AM PST - 6 comments
March 23
I recently saw the first half of
Best of Youth, and only the first half (the second half was sold out). I have to see the second half, it has lingered in my head, and by the time it is out on DVD in the US I will have lost interest, I'm sure. Any ways of getting my hands on a subtitled version of this movie? Help!
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posted by scazza at 9:36 PM PST - 4 comments
As a web developer I can usually find what I want on the Internet. This however, has stumped me for over five years. Please help me find any info about this movie. I saw it in the 80s, possibly the early 90s. For the amount of detail I recall about the movie, I can't believe I've never found anything on the net. The description follows:
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posted by pelletierm at 9:29 PM PST - 9 comments
My sister-in-law found a 2300 year old Greek Drachma coin at a thrift store for $4.00. She knew what it was because they found one just like it at an archeological dig in Bethsaida, Israel that she was on a while back.
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posted by spock at 8:03 PM PST - 11 comments
I'm hoping to start playing with home production of music on my pc, and am wondering what would be a good tutorial for the basic basics (e.g. using MIDI or not, a good combo of software sequencer, drum machine, synth, etc.), and some examples of the software mentioned above. I know next to nothing about it, but am a relatively experienced 'analog' musician. Where to begin?
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posted by skechada at 7:44 PM PST - 4 comments
I'm eager to find recordings of solo cello that could be classified as ambient/minimalist/moody. Help?
posted by davebush at 7:42 PM PST - 15 comments
I used a dvd to xvid, divx converter constantly until I had to reinstall windows. I can't remember the name of it for the life of me!
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posted by null terminated at 7:15 PM PST - 3 comments
DC Filter: My flight leaves for home tomorrow (Thursday) at 4:15pm. I will wake up early in the morning and plan on setting out to enjoy the city for 4 or 5 hours. What should I do? Tours? Museums? Attractions? I am open to almost any suggestion, but realize that my options may be limited due to my limited time here.
posted by xorowo at 6:42 PM PST - 16 comments
I know this is a longshot, but has anybody ever been contacted by a group calling itself the "Council of Advisors" from an investment firm called the Gerson Lehrman Group?
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posted by punkfloyd at 5:35 PM PST - 6 comments
WebTV equipment absolutely clogs the computer sections of my local thrift stores. Is there anything cool that can be done with it? (In my view, anything that involves a dial-up connection is not cool.)
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posted by box at 5:28 PM PST - 2 comments
I need help finding websites for restaurants that offer the "finish this gigantic meal in an hour and it's free" type of special. I'm looking for restaurants anywhere in the world, if they even exist outside of the US.
posted by greasy_skillet at 5:14 PM PST - 28 comments
I currently have my lip pierced in the middle, with a ring. I'm going to be doing a legal internship with a barrister in London this summer for four weeks. I don't want to lose the piercing, just yet. (The Man can own me in a year or two when I graduate law school).
[more in the extended]
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posted by whatitis at 4:19 PM PST - 18 comments
What is the Etymological origin of the phrase "And How!" used as an exclamation.
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posted by Megafly at 3:01 PM PST - 7 comments
I need a way to make a CD from my iTunes library with no gaps between songs. Ideally it would fade one song out and fade another song in, just like it does when I use 'Party Shuffle.'
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posted by fixedgear at 2:44 PM PST - 12 comments
I'm looking for simply photo gallery software that i can install on my web-hosting provider that will allow me to upload photos and have a very simple gallery that allows comments. Everything i seem to find is trying to throw in the kitchen sink. I just want a simple photo gallery. Something like flickr, but hosted on my own server, without all the doodads and gizmos.
posted by Freen at 2:35 PM PST - 15 comments
So, I've always kind of meant to get into Sonic Youth, but never really have. I saw them a few years ago on Sessions at West 54th on PBS, and really quite enjoyed it, especially when the drummer went all spastic. So, my question is, what is a good place to start to really get into Sonic Youth? What's their best album? Best song?
posted by geekhorde at 2:21 PM PST - 25 comments
I need a (free) (command line?) utility for XP to cut a 2 hour recording into 10 sections. Something simple that can take a file, cut, and save the smaller files with a new filename.
Audacity works - but it takes a lot of time and CPU cycles.
posted by bright77blue at 2:08 PM PST - 3 comments
Is it possible to get an already painted canvas "stretched" over a frame?
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posted by arha at 1:48 PM PST - 4 comments
My wife maintains that our dog smiles in response to being happy. I maintain that she smiles because she is panting (my dog, not my wife). I concede that there is a smile-like movement on the dog's mouth but, since she is part beagle and has a skin flap over her mouth, she is doing this to enhance her air exchange. Also, since she seems to pant more when she is excited, I think this "smiling" mechanism can be confusing because it happens on occasions when we would expect a smile.
I'm not sure what evolutionary purpose smiling would provide a dog (or a cat for that matter…she thinks the cat smiles, too). My guess is that smiling in humans serves a sexual/propagation purpose and, since dogs spend their time with their noses up the ass of other dogs, this would not make sense. Maybe that's why they wag their tails?
Anyone have any thoughts on this important matter?
posted by SparkyPine at 1:45 PM PST - 16 comments
I am a great admirer of the writings of New Republic literary editor Leon Wieseltier, but I am shy about recommending him to friends because I can't pronounce his name. How do you pronounce Wieseltier?
posted by shambles at 1:20 PM PST - 5 comments
we have a deck on our house where I've planted tomatoes in the past. we wanted to get a custom plant container that is 3 feet high, 6 feet long and 2.5 feet wide custom made for that space. it is prohibitively expensive. i thought I remember reading somewhere about making plant containers using concrete and peat moss or something to make it lighter in weight. i think i read it in martha stewart or something. i can't remember how to do it. it's not a big deck so the dimensions are really limited. any suggestions?
posted by dstrouse91 at 1:11 PM PST - 12 comments
is there anything like
this available for apple mail? i need a way to archive my huge mailboxes so i can search them later...
posted by subpixel at 12:19 PM PST - 3 comments
I know there have been several RSS-related questions, but I couldn't find the answer to the specific scenario I'm looking for. I want to combine several of my published RSS feeds into a single combined RSS feed.
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posted by pzarquon at 11:13 AM PST - 11 comments
Designers: our marketing/communications department has had a Communication Arts subscription for a while now. The past few issues seem to have taken it into a new editorial direction. Much less inspiring stuff there. Is there some hot new contender that we should look at subscribing to instead? We'd probably only get just one.
posted by willnot at 10:53 AM PST - 9 comments
Whats a good, public, lightweight, web-based chat service? Some friends of mine and I will be traveling around Asia, meeting up in different places, then diverging, then meeting up again etc.
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posted by vacapinta at 10:49 AM PST - 13 comments
My brother's PC has become infected with the
W32/Sumom.C worm. I'm resigned to re-formatting and a re-install to remove it, but how did it get there to deliver the payload? He's sure it arrived via MSN Messenger, as his kids use it heavily. Wishing to use this as an educational experience as well a chastening one, (no more Messenger!), I'd like to know if there was anything he or they should have done differently. Did they have to explicitly run the Messengered file(s), or was it all entirely automatic?
posted by punilux at 10:49 AM PST - 16 comments
Edward Tufte was supposed to be coming out with a new book, "Beautiful Evidence" I believed scheduled for last fall. I haven't seen anything about it; does anyone know its status?
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 10:44 AM PST - 2 comments
I am going to sublet my apartment for the last three months of my lease. I saw the question and comments
here , but have a slightly different set of concerns about how to do this [more inside].
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posted by picklebird at 10:04 AM PST - 11 comments
I am a sort-of musician (lo-fi ambient-ish- real marketable stuff) and I want to start going out into the crazy world about me and recording various sounds. I'm looking for tips on a suitable microphone for field recording and, just as importantly, a good (quality + convenience) digital sound recording device so that I can come back and transfer my sounds without losing quality.
posted by xmutex at 9:30 AM PST - 11 comments
Our new house has hard water, and my skin is really starting to dry out. What's the most economical way to soften water for your shower?
posted by bjork24 at 9:13 AM PST - 5 comments
I'm only 30, yet I find that my memory, concentration, and ability to focus ("tunnel vision") aren't near as sharp as they were five or ten years ago. What do you do to retain or improve your mental abilities as you get older?
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posted by mrbill at 9:08 AM PST - 27 comments
Quotefilter: I've been introducing my girlfriend to jazz lately and half-recalled a witty quote I read once about traditional jazz vs. avant garde jazz. More inside.
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posted by Dallasfilm at 8:14 AM PST - 5 comments
Light bulbs for public places like subways are designed with threads that run counter to ordinary light bulbs, so that the subway bulbs couldn't be stolen and used at home. I've been thinking about other examples of designing against standardization for a particular purpose (not necessarily preventing theft). Other examples might include clothes hangers in hotels, or the screws that hold together public restroom stalls. I'm trying to compile a collection of other examples. Any ideas?
posted by Jeff Howard at 7:45 AM PST - 64 comments
Received the shiny iMac G5 yesterday, along with 512 mb RAM from Crucial. Can't get the memory to fit in the slot. Replaced back panel for the meantime but couldn't get it flush again. Newbie nerves, indeed. Help!
posted by desuetude at 7:32 AM PST - 15 comments
Thanks to
this, I'm trying to find out what the top-selling single was when I was born (Dec. 4th 1982).
posted by Tlogmer at 7:11 AM PST - 48 comments
Death Valley in Bloom: where and what would you photograph if you were going?
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posted by DaShiv at 4:57 AM PST - 4 comments
March 22
I am having a mid-life crisis and would like to become a professional restaurant musician who plays James Taylor songs for baby boomers eating their filet mignons - help me.
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posted by Dag Maggot at 11:03 PM PST - 12 comments
I use reading glasses for reading (obviously) and when using the PC. They're low-strength (+1.5). I wondered if anybody here has tried any eyesight improvement exercises which have caused a noticeable improvement in their eyesight.
posted by haelen at 11:02 PM PST - 5 comments
Is it possible to be divorced (no-fault) in Arizona before a settlement is reached regarding the property and custody of kids?
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posted by j at 8:35 PM PST - 9 comments
A friend just gave me twenty-one rolls of 35mm film of various speeds and types. All of the rolls are
old; most of them have "use by" dates of 1989 or 1991. What is the likely condition of this film? Can any generalizations be made? What happens to film when it ages? (I'm secretly hoping that the film is still useful, but that it'll create bizarre chromatic aberrations.)
posted by jdroth at 8:17 PM PST - 13 comments
Why do certain Windows applications eat up 100% of my CPU processing capacity, and what can I do about it? This just happened when I started up
Zelda Classic, and happens with my SNES emulator. Additional clues and oddities under the fold, Cartalk-style.
[more inside]
posted by Saucy Intruder at 8:04 PM PST - 14 comments
I would really like to locate a hardback picture book I loved as a child. It has to do with 3 children who find this whole fantasy world up a tree. Different areas on each stretch of branch, and the tree is hollow so they can slide down it's centre to get to the ground.
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posted by aclevername at 6:02 PM PST - 4 comments
I don't have formal training in Video game Programming. I do have two Bachelors degree in Computer Science and Biomedical/Electrical Engineering. Is it worth it to go to pigpen for 2 years and two years of high-interest loans to get a Masters Degree in Computer Science at 29-30 to get into the video game industry or is there another way?
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posted by countzen at 5:50 PM PST - 20 comments
Which is the best PC-based software approach to allow a 12-year-old boy (who is bright, but not necessarily ardently studious) to explore the basics of CAD and/or architectural design principles?
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posted by dontrockwobble at 5:32 PM PST - 13 comments
Which bluetooth headsets are definitely compatible with Mac OS 10.3.8? I'd like to use one for Skype.
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posted by adrianhon at 4:45 PM PST - 2 comments
I picked up a used original Sony Playstation (PSOne) at a flea market yesterday. It's all working OK, but the only game I have is Resident Evil 3, and I was wondering if anyone could suggest some of their favourite games that are worth seeking out.
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posted by feelinglistless at 4:05 PM PST - 39 comments
How's your HTML-fu? Mine is failing me. I've created two dummy pages
Jump 1 and
Jump 2.
In Internet Explorer, these pages are identical except for their length. However, in Firefox, 2.html isn't in the same place horizontally as 1.html even though I think it should be. Am I missing something obvious? Thanks for the help.
posted by tayknight at 2:51 PM PST - 6 comments
Is there an easy way to get all the versions of a file from the history in Microsoft SourceSafe 6.0?
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posted by hootch at 2:41 PM PST - 2 comments
I just read a
wire story stating that, "hundreds of thousands of people may die and one quarter of the work force could be absent if Britain were hit by a bird flu pandemic said."
How seriously should we be worried?
posted by trinarian at 2:41 PM PST - 22 comments
I am at my parents vacation home in Florida for Spring break. Today I found an open wifi connection which I am using now. Since am here quite often, I would like to ask permission and even pay for access. (Maybe access in exchange for securing this person's router :-)) How do I physically locate the source of a "free" open wifi connection?
posted by Hash at 2:33 PM PST - 16 comments
Why are seemingly no IM clients compatible with each other for anything other than chat? (i.e., file transfer, image insertion, file transfer, oh, and also file transfer.) I'm not talking about Y!IM vs. AIM here -- I'm talking about the various clients that all use AOL's IM service. Even the open-source clients have this problem. Why wasn't this problem solved years ago?
posted by tweebiscuit at 2:32 PM PST - 9 comments
WordFilter: I'm using Microsoft Word as my word processing software for a very, very large project (my PhD). I have a strict limit of 100,000 words to follow, and although it seems as if that's a lot, I'm feeling the pinch right about now. The issue I'm having is that I get conflicting reports when I do a word count, using 2 different methods...
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posted by yellowcandy at 2:11 PM PST - 14 comments
Backup / Storage: I have a picture of an ideal product in my head. It connects via USB or Firewire, it contains two IDE drives that mirror each others. They're hot swappable, so if one fails, you just by another standard IDE drive of the same size and throw it in. All this is transparent to the machine accessing the device. It's under $300. Does this exist?
posted by weston at 1:32 PM PST - 6 comments
Let's say some friends and I want to purchase an old warehouse and refurbish it into something great, like living/art/performance space; how would we go about doing that?
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posted by deafmute at 1:27 PM PST - 9 comments
Engineers, architects, contractors, and woodworkers -- I need your help to prevent my untimely death in some terrible lofted-bed incident.
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posted by fishfucker at 1:13 PM PST - 27 comments
I'm a college student with about 500 dollars to invest. I was wondering what would be the best use of this money. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
posted by sicem07 at 11:27 AM PST - 27 comments
The management of my office building is holding a contest: determine the number of jelly beans in a container. Prize: $500 at Best Buy and all the beans.
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posted by smcniven at 11:05 AM PST - 12 comments
DVDs burned on my Humax Tivo machine aren't read by my Sony DRU DVDRW R+, R-. Why is this? Is there software I can use to edit my Tivo DVDs?
posted by ewkpates at 11:03 AM PST - 3 comments
I'm spending a little time in June in Troncones, Mexico, and I'm looking for advice on where to stay. I really just need place to sleep at night and keep my luggage, nothing fancy; I'd like a private room, though, not a hostel or other group arrangement. Anyone been there and have some advice or suggestions?
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posted by abingham at 10:43 AM PST - 1 comments
Losing high-speed Internet. We're moving from Austin to an area of rural Texas, and I am trying to find any last option for having high-speed Internet.
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posted by shannymara at 10:34 AM PST - 5 comments
I'm looking for information on the origins of a small Japanese notepad I've acquired. Primarily I'd like to know who the characters in the illustrations are, and why one is examining the other's backend.
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posted by adamkempa at 10:22 AM PST - 3 comments
I'm trying to split up big mp3's into smaller ones and my usual tricks aren't working either because either the track information I have is wrong or the CD is not listed on freedb. Do I have to suffer some number crunching or is there a better and easier way to break them up?
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posted by ralawrence at 10:01 AM PST - 1 comments
I'm looking to register a trademark. Searches on here have revealed some great answers on how to check if a trademark has been registered, etc, but I have not seen any recommendations for actually doing it. I'm thinking I'll need legal help to get it right, so can anybody recommend a moderately priced service or firm that they have used?
posted by baggers at 9:30 AM PST - 7 comments
WordPress users: What plugins have you found useful? My wife and I are both new WordPress users, after an arduous battle to wrest our previous entries from Blogger's paws. I'd like to extend the functionality of our sites, but the number of plugins available is a little daunting. What plugins do you use?
posted by monju_bosatsu at 9:09 AM PST - 8 comments
I'm in New York City until Sunday. I've been exploring mostly without direction so far, but I thought I'd throw it out to you guys. What should I see or do before I leave?
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posted by rfordh at 9:06 AM PST - 48 comments
I have a Fuji FinePix zoom A204 digital camera that I use with my iBook 14". The software that came with it for Mac OS X 10.3.x only allows me to download photos from the camera and then organize them. I can not use the "PC Cam" feature on my Mac, just on my PC. Here's my question... Is there any free or cheap software out there that will allow me to use its "PC CAM" feature on MAC OS X 10.3.x?
posted by Livewire Confusion at 4:34 AM PST - 2 comments
Is there any place in west or central London to buy fresh "NY style" bagels? And is there anything to the story that bagels don't taste the same outside of NY because the water is different?
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posted by gfrobe at 2:19 AM PST - 35 comments
March 21
Has anyone out there in hyperspace used the services of XE Trade (
www.xe.com/fx/) ? I want to transfer a $30k+ figure from a USD to a EURO account without incurring the ridiculous foreign exhange charges of my bank. This service looks good, but is it trustworthy ? Thanks !
posted by superfurry at 11:52 PM PST - 5 comments
We have decided as a family that we need to lower our cholesterol levels, and want to add fish to our diet for the omega 3 fatty acids. But we all hate the taste of fish.
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posted by Soliloquy at 9:56 PM PST - 45 comments
Within a Dreamweaver MX template I built, I want to insert a line of code which looks like this: [!-- InstanceParam name="pagename" type="text" value="index" --], only when I go under Modify > Template properties, the words are greyed out. Anyone know why? Is there another shortcut I can use to insert that line?
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posted by jenleigh at 9:41 PM PST - 3 comments
I bought a used iPod. It won't hold a charge. (It's a 3rd gen 40gb.) The guy has offered me my money back but can't meet me for 2 days. I got a good deal on it and I'd keep it if the battery were fine. However, is there a way for me to check this to make sure the battery is the only problem with it?
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posted by You Should See the Other Guy at 9:40 PM PST - 11 comments
Do you know of a page or project that will show a list of Amazon's
statistcally improbable phrases, live-linked to the Amazon content the are found in? Options for sorting by source date, title, author, subject, or other classes are what my inner librarian really wants.
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posted by Mo Nickels at 7:46 PM PST - 5 comments
Joy of joys, I've finally found a t-shirt I love (Jockey Classic, tagless, crew neck). That said, I hate wearing a white t. So, then, a two parter:
1) Can anyone discuss dying a t-shirt? I'm concerned not only with a simple process I can easily follow, but also with the color both remaining solid (as opposed to streaking) and also not running off in the wash onto other items.
2) Simpler still, can someone recommend a colored t-shirt similar to the Jockey? I'm looking for something that comes in a variety of colors and is lightweight, inexpensive, 100% cotton, preferably tagless and lacking the seam running along the rib/shoulder line that so many color t-shirts have.
posted by boombot at 6:44 PM PST - 13 comments
A major publisher has approached me about using a photograph that I posted on my website that was originally taken by my dad (who, for reference, passed away a few years ago). According to the person who contacted me, the image would take up about a half-page in the interior of the book and they are interested in a quote for both world and North American rights. Can anyone give me a notion of what sort of compensation would be normal for this sort of thing and what the correct procedure might be? Thanks!
posted by stefnet at 6:11 PM PST - 5 comments
I want to
cook with okra, but I live in the Pacific Northwest. Help with this specific dilemma would be great, or more generically -- any tips on finding produce that seems, at first pass, to be unavailable in a given area?
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posted by gurple at 6:10 PM PST - 9 comments
I'm part of a Chicago-based band, and we're on the cusp of releasing our first full-length studio album. We're not on a label, so we have to find radio stations to play our stuff and record stores to carry our CD's ourselves. Are there any good resources out there to help indie bands find these? Can you share any indie-friendly stores/stations in Chicago yourself?
posted by buriednexttoyou at 6:10 PM PST - 9 comments
I have a 1950's Chickering piano that plays 'bright' Nice touch, etc but loud in it's current home. Piano tuner says 900.00 will voice it, fix hammers, etc. Piano store says that vintage not worth the money and should trade it.
I am looking for suggestions. Others tell me to just put blankets, etc as sound absorbers. Not sure what to do. I play classical stuff.
posted by lag at 6:09 PM PST - 2 comments
Thinking about taking the youngins to Disney World in June. Daughter will be 11 and it will be her second trip. Son will be 4 1/2 - first time for him. Last time, we stayed at a Disney property: rode the shuttle buses, swam in the myriad pools, drank $2 cokes, etc. This time, cash flow is more of an issue so I'm looking at Kissimmee hotels. Just wondering, though, if the low price is worth losing the on-site amenities and convenience. Been there? Done that?
posted by SashaPT at 6:09 PM PST - 10 comments
Foggy photo of a kayaker with a whale surfacing alongside. Anyone remember where?
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posted by figment at 6:01 PM PST - 9 comments
I have recently moved in to help my mother who is battling cancer can I do to make this process a bit more enjoyable for her? I want to cheer her up and bring some humor back.
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posted by Viomeda at 5:14 PM PST - 10 comments
I have inherited approx. 100 very old family photo negatives, many of highly nonstandard sizes, some non-square (seem to be hand-cut with scissors, perhaps), etc. I started scanning a few and fell in love with them not only as heirlooms but as Americana--they're dynamite. But I'm getting lost when I try to figure out how to get the lot safely & archivally hi-res scanned. [MI]
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posted by clever sheep at 3:18 PM PST - 12 comments
I saw a website once where you can enter a URL and it will use Google or whatever to find similar web pages that the page may have derived from, based on word match frequency. It is useful when looking for copyright violations, or the source for someones work. What is that website?
posted by stbalbach at 2:25 PM PST - 2 comments
My kids (6, 9, 10) have thoroughly enjoyed running through the catalog of Ghibli/Miyazaki films that are available in English release. Now that we are running out of titles, I was wondering if any MeFi people could suggest more kid-friendly titles that are kind-of-like the Ghibli films, if you know what I mean.
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posted by cgk at 1:55 PM PST - 19 comments
I'm looking for a few good books or articles - either on the web, or in paper publications - about political marketing.
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posted by tozturk at 1:26 PM PST - 7 comments
Okay, you can laugh a little bit. I'm 24, I moved to a more urban area a year ago, and I want to learn how to ride a bike to get around the city.
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posted by patgas at 1:05 PM PST - 22 comments
Digital cameras: rechargeable battery vs. one-time use (AA) batteries. Which is preferable and why?
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posted by suchatreat at 12:51 PM PST - 32 comments
Has Stephen Fry ever given a full account of the time he ran off to Belgium and away from the production of Simon Gray's play Cell Mates (as angrily related by Gray in the highly enjoyable
Fat Chance)? It's been ten years, but I can't find anything other than passing references in interviews to his "little wobble". He's been amazingly candid about his past
before, and I'd love to read his version of events.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 12:32 PM PST - 8 comments
I am addicted to the GameCube game, Animal Crossing. I want to make a copy of my town, and send it to my sister, who is also addicted. It won't let me copy the memory card - is there a way to do this?
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posted by Futurehouse at 12:12 PM PST - 10 comments
I just bought two records as a birthday present for a friend, and I realize that I have no idea how to ship them. The post office doesn't seem to sell anything appropriate, and I asked at Amoeba Records and they didn't know either (they said they typically ship only in large numbers). Does anyone know of a better solution than a 14x14x14 box filled with packing peanuts?
posted by symbebekos at 12:11 PM PST - 11 comments
My wife is on the board of a non-profit organization. We live in a retirement community that has all kinds of fundraisers,plays, fun runs etc. We need ideas for an annual fundraising campaign that is different, will grab new attention and attract substantial local donations annually.
posted by pablogrande at 12:02 PM PST - 20 comments
We have four computers that we want to keep music on, but the collection is too big to just copy the whole library everywhere. What are our options?
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posted by mosch at 12:02 PM PST - 10 comments
Anyone know of the best way to take screenshots of video on a PC? I notice that DVDs and mpegs and avis all seem to do a weird matte screen thing where video is projected "above" the video player on your screen, so all screengrabs are blank. There must be a hack to get a simple grab every now and then off this sort of video. Anyone ever figure this out?
posted by mathowie at 11:23 AM PST - 8 comments
In addition to the
math class, I’m in charge of instructing the violent repeat, juvenile offenders who have earned their GEDs in “experiential life skills.” We have a rewarding brief daily class in money management, employability, independent living, etc. The rest of the day the offenders have jobs around the facility where they’re supposed to be practicing responsibility, initiative, and other workplace skills. In reality, they’re doing mindless chores six hours a day. I’d like this time to be spent more professionally, more business-like, so they can learn something about inventory, cooperation, deadlines, marketing, technology etc. and feel proud doing it.
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posted by glibhamdreck at 9:34 AM PST - 17 comments
I bought a Twist n Go scooter last year without the research and it turns out that its very hard to get parts for this scooter when repairs are necessary. I was wondering if anyone could recommend a manufacturer(honda etc...) of a scooter that if bought used could still be quickly repaired with parts that are still made or easily ordered. Or a scooter that is new, but cheap and will last long. I would like to keep my purchase under $1000...
posted by matthelm at 8:22 AM PST - 3 comments
If there's a badass
tile and grout cleaner out there (for the bathroom), can you tell me what it is please? I can't seem to find "it". I don't mind letting "it" sit and soak. I don't mind scrubbing. But I want results. Gracias!
posted by Witty at 8:15 AM PST - 17 comments
I'm not sure how to file my taxes. I am a US citizen living in Canada. I am a stay-at-home mother and I have no income to claim this year.
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posted by Melinika at 7:51 AM PST - 19 comments
I lost the software for my Canon Powershot A75. Try as I might, I can't get the camera to work with just the Windows 2000 TWAIN drivers.
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posted by TurkishGolds at 7:45 AM PST - 15 comments
What's the best way to burn roughly 100 CDs? Banjo and I are going to be giving mix CDs as wedding favors and would like to know the best method of going about this. Burn at home, or get someone else to do it? How much would that cost?
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posted by robocop is bleeding at 7:27 AM PST - 12 comments
A client wants to enable fiile uploads via their web site. The web site is hosted outside the company and the files need to be uploaded to their FTP server which is hosted within or on-site at the company. Thus far all the components I've looked into upload to the web server. Is this simply the only option? Can anyone recommend a good component or alternate method? PHP, ASP are fine.
posted by juiceCake at 7:20 AM PST - 10 comments
Zeldafilter - Can anyone tell me where Makar goes if you die in the wind temple and then save?
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posted by quibx at 7:11 AM PST - 6 comments
My 160 gig HD is being scanned daily by Anti-Virus Guard. Seems like all this wear-and-tear would add up. Does this reduce the life span of a hard drive?
Bonus if you know how to make Grisoft's AVG Free Edition scan less frequently.
posted by agropyron at 6:30 AM PST - 9 comments
FashionFilter: Is there a "rule" about wearing a colored shirt with a black pin-striped suit? Are there other rules about female business attire that a soon-to-graduate-undergrad should be aware of?
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posted by asnowballschance at 6:25 AM PST - 8 comments
Lately, if you open a packaged kids toy, you're faced with the daunting task of unwrapping and untangling the toy from its own packaging. This is a daunting real task when faced with a kid who simply wants to play. Why all the wires?
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posted by dhacker at 6:15 AM PST - 10 comments
What are good ways to generate new ideas for something you’re thinking about when you’ve hit a brick wall?
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posted by lunkfish at 6:04 AM PST - 17 comments
Bloglines lets you see who is publicly subscribing to your RSS feed. But can you also find out who your current subscribers are with Feedster, MyYahoo, MyMSN and Newsgator?
posted by timyang at 12:55 AM PST - 4 comments
March 20
I need to rip an extra-wide door out of our shed and put in a new narrower one. The door frame consists of substantial timbers -- I'm guessing around 3x8 (actual measurements). The floor is cement, there's no bottom frame member. What's the best way to replace the door?
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posted by user92371 at 11:24 PM PST - 8 comments
Despite MetaFilter's members' fantastic advice for my boyfriend to choose MIT over GA Tech, my guy is most likely going to stay in Atlanta. He's talked about the possibility of buying a house in ATL, but living on a student stipend, and without substantial savings, how would that work? (He's curious, too, not just me.) Renting in Atlanta is expensive, so a house payment could very possibly be lower than rent . . . and we've heard sometimes people buy without down payments now . . . but we're not sure about the logistics. Any good info is appreciated. : )
posted by sally_jp at 10:47 PM PST - 17 comments
Can I scan 35mm film negatives with my Canon LiDE 30? Other flatbed scanners come with an adapter that allows for this, but this scanner didn't. Is there an off the shelf widget that will work?
posted by aladfar at 10:00 PM PST - 8 comments
My Turntable will only play through one channel. I have a soldering question, because I have to replace the RCA cables. Can someone teach me how to properly solder audio equipment?
I have never soldered before, but I am handy with electronics. The Turn Table in question is a Pioneer PL-10, a nice older one that goes well with vintage reciever.
I bought it for $30 along with some scratched up first pressing Beatles albums. Basically, when the needle is down you can only hear one channel. There is absolutely no signal from the left RCA cable. When I reverse the plugs, the dead RCA cable is still dead.... just on the other channel.
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posted by Dean Keaton at 9:29 PM PST - 13 comments
Today, at an antique mall, I found, for $2 each, three Edison discs (also known as "Edison diamond discs"), big, thick (1/4"), 78-size records. I'm quite sure they're not valuable or anything, but I'd like to know more about them: when they were made, what the serial numbers etched into them refer to, who the artists were, etc. Does anyone know how to learn more about these things, either online or in print?
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posted by Dr. Wu at 9:20 PM PST - 12 comments
Can anyone tell me where to find the origin of and definitive rules for the traditional American card game
The King of Hearts Has Five Sons, mentioned in the article
Deduction Games in the December 2000 issue of
The Games Journal?
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posted by rwhe at 9:04 PM PST - 3 comments
Due to a lucky alignment of stars, I have a 5 day vacation slot appear out of nowhere. I semi-randomly picked a destination: on Tuesday night I am flying out to Los Angeles, renting a car and driving into desert. What must I see/do?
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posted by blindcarboncopy at 8:43 PM PST - 12 comments
I need to make an audio application work on a windows xp computer that doesn't have audio hardware.
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posted by b1tr0t at 7:07 PM PST - 7 comments
The Landmark Forum / est, courtesy Werner Erhard, has stolen my friends. Please help!
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posted by lorrer at 5:10 PM PST - 28 comments
iPhoto help: I was importing photos and when it was complete, it wouldn't let me go to the library, so I had to restart my iBook, and now iPhoto won't load. I looked in the Apple help forums, but they're no help at all. This ever happen to you?
posted by ColdChef at 4:33 PM PST - 10 comments
I want to take my Mac G5-based
sound system on the road, including setting it up outdoors, using my own power source. I understand a deep marine battery is the best source for silent, portable power, and delivers AC via a converter. Anyone have experience with such a setup?
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posted by rleamon at 4:23 PM PST - 4 comments
A few years ago my mother picked up
this traditional(?) instrument in Hungary. What's it called and how do you use it?
posted by klue at 3:30 PM PST - 9 comments
At the end of the movie "The Good Thief"... [SPOILERS INSIDE]
posted by nicwolff at 2:46 PM PST - 4 comments
Is there a site with a ukulele tuning guide? I have seen one for guitar were you press the button and it makes the sound the sting is supposed to make when strummed. I cant seem to find one like that for my ukulele though.
posted by Suparnova at 2:18 PM PST - 8 comments
How do I dispose of an old dorm-style cube fridge that has died a horrible death and is not worth repairing?
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posted by SpecialK at 2:10 PM PST - 7 comments
I'm trying to organize all that paperwork that's piling up in my home, but I'm also trying to simplify my life and reduce clutter.
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posted by luneray at 1:18 PM PST - 7 comments
After recently having seen The Life Aquatic, I noticed that the soundtrack missed a song from one of the key scenes in the movie. This is not the first time I have come across this phenomenon and I wondered if anyone knew whether it was a legal issue with copyright or something as mundane as CD capacity. After all, if an artist/label allows their song to feature in a movie, why not on the soundtrack too?
posted by ulanbator3 at 1:10 PM PST - 13 comments
My dad just bought me an XM radio receiver, and I'm trying to run it through the audio input jack of my Powerbook. I know the sound comes in, because I can record it -- but I can only actually listen to the recordings, and not the sound in real-time! Or, at least, that's all I can figure out how to do. How do I listen to audio input without recording?
posted by Coherence Panda at 12:53 PM PST - 4 comments
Over the years, I've collected a whole lot of t-shirts, and as I'm something of a slacker nerd, they're pretty much the only thing I wear. The problem is, I keep them in stacks in a big rack of square cubby-like containers, so I wash them, I fold them, I stack them on top, and then inevitably wind up wearing the same dozen shirts over and over again. I've been trying to devise an ingenious way to get a better rotation, but I'm coming up blank. (I share a closet with the girl, and pretty much all of the hanger space is hers, so that's out.) Anyone have a brilliant method of managing shirts like this?
posted by majcher at 12:52 PM PST - 19 comments
I'm a non USAian who spends about 4 months a year in USA. Where can I find in depth news about anything that happens outside this country.
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posted by adamvasco at 9:42 AM PST - 19 comments
Does anyone know how to find the name of the hiphop song playing in the background of the most recent
Las Vegas episode?
posted by stratcog at 7:58 AM PST - 2 comments
I am a fan of Robert A. Heinlein. I am also a fan of Jane Austen, and I like reading the discussions of her works at
pemberley.com. I haven't found a site that discusses Heinlein's work in a similar way. Do you have any suggestions?
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posted by Monday at 7:18 AM PST - 2 comments
In
Neverwhere Neil Gaiman describes a Christian abbot thusly:
The abbot had known that this day would bring pilgrims. The knowledge was part of his dreams; it surrounded him, like the darkness. So the day became one of waiting, which was, he knew, a sin: moments were to be experienced; waiting was a sin against both the time that was still to come and the moments one was currently disregarding.
Is anyone aware of any Christian teaching that anticipation is to be avoided? To modern ears Gaiman's passage sounds so be-here-now Buddhist. I am aware of the passage in Matthew where Jesus says "Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself," which is pretty explicit, but has this notion ever been taken up and turned into formal doctrine by any branch of the church, or has any historically important theologian ever grabbed this particular ball and run with it?
posted by jfuller at 7:16 AM PST - 7 comments
I am: vegan, mildy exercise-induced asthmatic, non-car owning & often-biking, slightly scoliotic (not visibly, but there's back pain here and there), have virtually no access to exercise equipment other than a set of ancient free weights, weight bench, and mat, without much money. I desire hulking guns and beefiness all over.
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posted by saysthis at 6:31 AM PST - 11 comments
ClickCutCrunchFilter. I'm an amateur musician who wants to start producing electronic music on my PC.
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posted by gentle at 12:08 AM PST - 19 comments
March 19
Has anyone compiled a list of books promoted on the Daily Show?
posted by krisjohn at 11:11 PM PST - 1 comments
Ok, I'm terribly curious...I've seen the Matthew Lesko infomercials for years. Some of you have got to have picked them up. Are they worthwhile. It's not the cost, its the time investment that I'm talking about.
posted by filmgeek at 7:43 PM PST - 11 comments
I am ready to Fight The Man and refuse to remove my shoes at airport security *unless and until* they set off the metal detector. Help my defense.
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posted by tristeza at 7:26 PM PST - 50 comments
I am going to Tokyo for a week of work and have one free day. What would people recommend in my one free day. I have some interests such as Japanese consumer electronics, toys, and sneaker/streetwear culture but really want to make sure I have the best day possible. Any advice?? Any great sites to use. (Already using superfuture.com.)
posted by rje7 at 5:44 PM PST - 15 comments
My brother says that he can't use websites which have some kind of "logging in" type function e.g. online banking, Hotmail etc. He's kind of resigned to it but asked me why it happens. Has anyone any ideas why this happens? Browser settings? Cookie problems?
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posted by uk_giffo at 4:06 PM PST - 7 comments
Famous vagina-centric feminist artists out there? I know Judy Chicago is pretty famous for her
Dinner Party and Eve Ensler's
Vagina Monologues is a good one too. Any others?
I know there have been a few male ones too, can't remember. Google is not easy to search for this stuff!
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posted by Napierzaza at 2:11 PM PST - 21 comments
I've taken the plunge, and purchased a Mac Mini. I've used Windows primarily for most of my life, with a bit of Debian Linux. What recommendations do you all have for general use, software, etc etc?
posted by jackofsaxons at 2:06 PM PST - 15 comments
I need advice on how to refinish a dining table that is badly damaged. The table is walnut and about 50 years old. The wood is very dry, enough so that the grain is visibly raised, and the finish has been completely gone for years. The stains are dark (including one large spot stained by persimmons).
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posted by cali at 1:50 PM PST - 6 comments
I'm trying to track down the source of a dialogue sample used most prominently in several My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult tracks and Meat Beat Manifesto's 'Acid Again'. It appears to be an interview with a girl describing her experiences with drugs. My Google searches have resulted in a lot of people talking _about_ this particular sample, but never the source itself. (Quotes inside...)
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posted by djwudi at 1:27 PM PST - 5 comments
Which statement is correct?
Does either of you recognize this person?
Do either of you recognize this person?
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posted by pelican at 12:48 PM PST - 19 comments
The About.com page says that golf cart rentals on Catalina Island go for about $30 plus an hour. Is this right? So a couple hour tour of the botanical gardens and Avalon would cost me over $100? For some reason this seems a little high to me. I remember when I was a kid it was about $25 for the afternoon, but that was years ago. Anyone been to Avalon recently who can remember the rate?
posted by luriete at 11:21 AM PST - 5 comments
I need a free and solid document reader. I have a PC, the documents I need to read are from a mac. Any suggestions?
posted by pwally at 11:04 AM PST - 6 comments
MacFilter: My iBook froze last night and displayed some very unusual colors, and now it won't boot up. Is it fried?
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posted by hughbot at 10:46 AM PST - 7 comments
I would like to purchase a quality watch that will last my lifetime and potentially beyond that.
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posted by ix at 8:59 AM PST - 22 comments
I recently registered a domain name through GoDaddy.com and now I want to forward e-mail to an address on my domain to another e-mail address on another domain. GoDaddy's help files don't explain how to do this. Help!
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posted by Servo5678 at 8:40 AM PST - 6 comments
How do you get the lint and fluffies to come off new towels so they don't leave fluffies all over you?
thanks dudes!
posted by cashmein at 7:22 AM PST - 8 comments
Does anyone have any experience with online collaborative spaces, i.e., websites that allow users on different computers to work on the same document, whiteboard space, etc.? I've found links via Google and will be trying to explore, but if you have a favorite—or not!—it would save me some time.
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posted by ancientgower at 5:25 AM PST - 11 comments
I am trying to break into the Linux Server Administration field so I have been doing quite a bit of studying lately. I figured while I am studying the subject I might as well work towards a related certification. I am
leaning towards the
Linux Professional Institute Certification. Other certifications I am considering are
CompTIA’s Linux+ and
Red Hat’s RHCE. So which Linux certification is the best? I would say Red Hat is the most reputable of these three but I am concerned that their certification might be too Red-Hat-centric, and I don't want to be locked into one distro. Which one is the
easiest/cheapest to obtain? Which is the mostly
highly regarded in the industry? Are there others that I missed?
posted by dirvish at 12:45 AM PST - 11 comments
March 18
If I attempt to make a payment to someone by direct deposit into their bank account, but deposit it into the wrong account, what legal means do I have to recover the money?
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posted by randomstriker at 11:28 PM PST - 15 comments
I've built a PC with a Shuttle AN35 mainboard (with Award BIOS) and it won't shut down or standby. When I shut down (through software) it goes through the motions of shutting down, but then instead of ultimately going black & quiet it just reboots. Same with attempts to make it standby - it just reboots. I have checked the connection of the PC case's PWON connector to the motherboard, diddled with Windows XP's power settings, and poked around in the BIOS a little but am not sure what to do. This sucks because when I ultimately have to shut it down to move it or something, I have to do it the ugly way: with the mechanical switch on the power supply. help!
posted by scarabic at 9:56 PM PST - 4 comments
An iPod question that has me stumped. I have an old firewire only iPod (2nd generation). I would like to sync it to a Windows computer that has an absolute lack to slots for a PCI card, but has four open usb 2 slots. I cannot find any sort of converter. Does anyone know if such a thing exists? They seem so similar.
posted by rtimmel at 9:44 PM PST - 5 comments
I'm going to college...about 10 years late. My employer will pay for school, but not for another 6 months, and I want to get started now. My school will accept up to 45 credits through the CLEP exams. Anyone take them? Any advice on studying or strategies for taking them? Helpful books?
posted by horsemuth at 8:28 PM PST - 8 comments
Tags. They're used everywhere on the Web now to categorize stuff, but not everything has a unique name. Do you tag stuff in the most individual way possible, or do you let tags overlap? For instance, if I post a picture of my computer screen and one of my house, do I tag them both "windows"? Or do I tag one "Microsoft Windows" and the other "house windows"? Is someone named "Chris Smith" stuck with being conglomerated with other people with the same name, or should I ask Chris Smith what his middle name is and add it to the tag? It's easy for New York City to get the tag "NYC", but should photos of Springfield, Illinois be "Springfield", "Springfield, IL", or "Springfield, Illinois"?
posted by Nikolai at 7:49 PM PST - 18 comments
What's your favorite credit card and why? I'm currently using a Bankone Amazon.com Visa, which corresponds to 3% back for amazon purchases and 1% back for all other purchases in the form of $25 amazon gift certificates. I pay off my balance in full every month. Anyone particularly happy with the rewards they're getting from their credit cards?
posted by sirion at 6:46 PM PST - 30 comments
I am putting together some research, and wanted to poll fellow MeFiers about what they think are the five (or two or ten)
most influential or important open source projects, currently being worked on and why. Linux and Firefox are obvious, so what others would qualify -- Gaim? OpenCRX? I want to know your list, and why these would make it.
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posted by blahblahblah at 6:13 PM PST - 27 comments
My daughter came home last night with her school newspaper (written, designed, etc. by 4th and 5th graders). They interviewed a kid from their school who has Ausperger's syndrome, which I thought was very cool. I know just enough to recognize the name and the basics behind the syndrome. At the end of the article though they list a "fact" about Auspergers is that Bill Clinton, Albert Einstein, and Bill Gates are fellow Auspies. This is news to me, how about you? I can't seem to find any information that successfully contradicts or supports this unexpected claim.
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posted by nramsey at 4:08 PM PST - 14 comments
I'm looking for a web-based tool to allow customers of my ISP to manage their zone files.
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posted by bac at 3:24 PM PST - 2 comments
Anyone know of any good books, plays, or other material about
Suzanne Le Peletier de Saint-Fargeau, a.k.a. "Mademoiselle Nation"? She was an eleven-year-old girl adopted by the French revolutionaries after her father's murder by a royalist. Her portrait by
Jacques-Louis David is currently on display at the Getty in Los Angeles, and as the book blog
Romancing the Tome says the story of her life would make for excellent reading. Surely she's found her way into print by now?
posted by Asparagirl at 2:50 PM PST - 3 comments
I hate to use AskMe for tech support like this but this has me scratching my head. Ok this is the set up...G4 (AGP) has the stock drive(20GB) and a Maxtor 150Gb drive on a Sonnet PCI ATA/100 card. Sporadically, and I emphisise that word, the big drive will either not be recognized at all or not mount because the drive shows up as having 0 Bytes as the drive size. What is the cause? -->
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posted by ShawnString at 2:39 PM PST - 7 comments
I recently purchased a 30GB iPod photo... as in purchased it a week ago. I love it to death except my case is horribly scratched! I'm obviously careful with it and have kept it in my pant pockets but the front and back have all these tiny scratches. It's like they made the case to scratch easily... any ideas that help reduce the tiny, albeit annoying scuffs?
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posted by geoff. at 2:22 PM PST - 11 comments
I remember reading a "young adult" type of novel, probably in the late seventies or possibly early eighties, that I could swear was called "The Mark of Conti." However, no amount of googling has turned it up. It's about a high school student ("Mark Conti"?) who reprograms his school's computer. Does this sound familiar to anyone?
posted by JeffL at 1:36 PM PST - 5 comments
Anyone know how I can create an .mp3 of the audio from a .mov video file on the same pc?
posted by Mean Mr. Bucket at 1:34 PM PST - 6 comments
Thinking about doing the five-boro bike ride in NYC this year. I'd like to hear experiences, opinions & advice from anybody who's done it. Is it too crowded to be fun? What kind of shape do I need to be in? What should I bring? How long will it take to finish?
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 1:18 PM PST - 7 comments
Every single morning when I wake up, my left hand and forearm are 'asleep'. Am I doing any long-term damage to the flesh/nerves of that hand by letting this continue to happen?
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posted by anastasiav at 1:17 PM PST - 16 comments
Diabolical Brainstorm: what are ways, either real or imagined, that one could erase almost all human life on earth? Don't worry. I'm not actually planning something. I'm curious about compiling a list of ways that humanity could be wiped out. This could be a real-world threat or a science fiction-type threat.
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posted by quadog at 1:07 PM PST - 32 comments
I'm looking for a Chris Rock stand-up routine from several years back. He does a rant on Fried Chicken..
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posted by pencroft at 12:38 PM PST - 4 comments
Where can I get a sack suit (in the style that was fashionable around 1860) for fairly cheap?
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posted by cmonkey at 12:22 PM PST - 14 comments
Is there a way to make Firefox open a link in a new tab by double-clicking it?
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posted by tcp at 12:19 PM PST - 11 comments
Say you played synth semi-competently with a band. And say your responsibilities were to play fuzzy, low-end bass melodies, but occasionally you wanted to trigger noisy textural sounds simultaneously and manipulate them with effects--would you run your synth through a rackmount sampler, play with two synths, or buy a tabletop device (ex: Electribe) to add texture?
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posted by dhoyt at 12:11 PM PST - 10 comments
When I run IE6 on my Win 2000 at work, over the course of the day I end up with about 25 ghost IE processes hogging up my RAM even though I have exited all IE windows.
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posted by Mid at 12:01 PM PST - 6 comments
An associate, while returning from a work site after 5 p.m. and was on a personal errand, had his car broken into and along with personal items, his work laptop was stolen. His homeowner's insurance covered his personal items, but obviously would not cover his work owned laptop. His employer, on the other hand, is demanding that he pay for the cost of the laptop (a 3 year old Dell bought for approximately $700, which they consider to be worth $590). He works for a fairly large non-profit located in Maryland. The laptop was purchased with a technical grant, which I expect would have demanded insurance. And he doesn't believe that he signed anything that would have made him liable.
What are his rights?
posted by Heatwole at 11:51 AM PST - 18 comments
My buddy just got hired, right out of university, by a big-shot consulting firm. What's a good, cheap gift I can give him?
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posted by sid at 11:37 AM PST - 18 comments
I'm looking for French films that could possibly be considered classics, but are also newer than the 40's/50's/60's gems.
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posted by Stauf at 11:36 AM PST - 40 comments
I want to work from home. The only thing stopping me is my damn office phone. I'd like to have that number forwarded through the Internet so I can answer it via my PC at home or wherever I happen to be (via wireless).
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posted by b_thinky at 10:00 AM PST - 4 comments
I just found out yesterday that I will be moving to Dayton, OH. Lots of info is needed.
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posted by thebwit at 9:38 AM PST - 10 comments
I am not currently "in-shape". In past months, I've been thinking that it would be pretty awesome to run a marathon. Think big, right?
What do I need to go buy before I start?
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posted by schustafa at 8:59 AM PST - 24 comments
I've decided to go on vacation this year and I'm in the early stages of planning it. My style is backpack/hostel/budget travel. Yes, I already know about Let's Go and Lonely Planet. I'll be leaving 9/2 and coming back the 14th. I've got my destinations narrowed to the following: Tokyo, Seoul, Hong Kong, or Moscow. Any experience/advice please.
posted by pieoverdone at 8:47 AM PST - 5 comments
Strange CSS problem with my departmental website when using cookies to set text sizes. On any font size but the standard, content is (correctly) centered. Using the standard size, content is left-justified. Both XHTML and CSS* validate. This is killing me.
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posted by caution live frogs at 8:39 AM PST - 2 comments
I need an automotive guru. I'm losing my mind. See if these symptoms add up to anything to you.
I've got a wobble in the front end. Here's what I know so far...(it's a bit of a saga)
If you figure it out, I'll buy you a beer.
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posted by gummo at 8:32 AM PST - 11 comments
Normally, I'm not a big fan of historical or period films, but lately I've been enjoying a few. Recently, I watched
Braveheart and
Gladiator, and now I'm wondering if anybody has any suggestions. I do enjoy epics, and I don't mind older films, so any ideas would be welcome. What historical hero movies do you recommend?
posted by MrZero at 8:24 AM PST - 39 comments
So I go to the gym semi-regularly and use the Elliptical machine. It has some built-in routines. One is called "fat-burning" and one is called "Cardio Workout". The fat burning sets a target heart rate in the 120's (number made up) while the Cardio sets my target heart rate somewhat higher -- maybe the low 140's. My question is, which will actually burn more fat, the Fat Burn or the Cardio?
posted by petestein1 at 8:08 AM PST - 21 comments
NovelFilter: I just finished
Romola, by Eliot, and didn't love it, but want to learn more about Florence in the era--a very interesting time, to put it mildly--with the Medicis, Savanarola, etc. Any good novels or
non-boring non-fiction on Florence in the late 1400s-early 1500s?
posted by amberglow at 8:05 AM PST - 11 comments
I am utterly convinced that I need a sewing machine. But I have absolutely no idea where to begin.
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posted by jennyjenny at 7:47 AM PST - 14 comments
What's your favorite music to exercise to?
posted by barjo at 7:37 AM PST - 36 comments
I'm looking to record on my PC ( I have adequate Hardware) some music using guitars, bass, vocals, and some other instruments. I need suggestions for a good software program to use (money is not a problem) for the basic recording/tracking and a good program to create drum tracks from scratch. Please see extended explanation for more details.
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posted by derekislost at 6:59 AM PST - 11 comments
I have a website that I maintain for my middle school soccer team. It has the usual stuff: practice schedules, game schedules, rosters, stats, etc. Sometimes I will post fun things related to soccer on the site. For some reason, the site is being blocked by internet filtering software at the school, the public library, and even in some homes.
What can I do to get my site unblocked by filtering software?
posted by BobJordan at 6:54 AM PST - 5 comments
What are some good companies that build customized notebooks? I'm looking for a level of customization/options like
VoodooPC.
posted by sciurus at 6:25 AM PST - 2 comments
Why do links in my anchor tags turn the # into %35 and thus break? Any idea why - and (most importantly) how to fix it. (yeah, I know I should scrap this cumbersome system and move to WordPress - it's my plan, but I don't have time at the moment).
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posted by Pericles at 5:23 AM PST - 12 comments
Every so often a finger on my left hand twitches involuntarily. Why is this?
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posted by biffa at 3:15 AM PST - 8 comments
I've done some programming in my time (Basic & Turbo Pascal way back when), shifted more to the web side of everything about 8 years ago (procedural PHP server-side and HTML&JS&CSS client-side).
Having recently purchased a mac mini, and hearing the gospel of how easy it is to program with carbon & cocoa, does anybody have any recommendations (books) on where to start?
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posted by slater at 1:59 AM PST - 5 comments
Maybe this should be titled 'To de-lint or not to de-lint.' My Dad is living with me for a few weeks and we've had some heated discussions about dryer lint. In the interest of peace (and the possibility of not having to do any dishes for a week) - please share your knowledge or opinion.
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posted by LadyBonita at 1:16 AM PST - 39 comments
Where is the best place on a violin to attach a DiMarzio Acoustic Model Pickup? The band's got a gig tonight, the pick-up is new and we want the best sound possible from the fiddle.
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posted by bunglin jones at 12:30 AM PST - 5 comments
I'm on a fundraising team for
Relay for Life. We've set a fundraising goal of $10,001. Other than hitting up family, friends, and local businesses, what are some good ways to raise a lot of money quickly?
posted by joshuaconner at 12:27 AM PST - 10 comments
March 17
Following Bjarne Stroustrup's lead in
The C++ Programming Language, 3rd edition I've for several years programmed in a proportionally spaced, not a fixed-width, font. What's a good font for this?
[more inside]
posted by orthogonality at 11:38 PM PST - 8 comments
Every once in a while, after I laugh long and hard, I lose strength in my hands and even a little in my arms. Does that sound familiar to anyone?
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posted by jessicool at 11:38 PM PST - 7 comments
I'm looking for a Digital Video camera but am at a loss as to what to look for, what technologies are on the horizon (that are, perhaps, worth waiting for), etc., etc..
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posted by Lactoso at 11:12 PM PST - 10 comments
Despite my best intentions, I'm not especially good at keeping in contact with people. How do you stay in touch with friends after you've parted ways?
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posted by Aster at 11:06 PM PST - 13 comments
I live in a city with a fairly high homeless population, and sometimes I wonder why the *really* destitute people (those seemingly beyond any help) don't just commit a crime bad enough that they would get put in jail for several years, where they would at least receive 3 meals a day, regular lodging, medical attention and the chance to learn some sort of skill or get a GED or something. I imagine a great majority of the homeless have a drug and/or alcohol addiction that they realize couldn't continue in prison, but is that the driving factor? If you were beyond hope and had to choose to either be homeless or incarcerated for the better part of your life, which would you choose?
posted by robbie01 at 10:27 PM PST - 26 comments
So I found this poem that, back in high school, I found in one of the poetry books I was obsessed with. It brought back great memories! I'm 28 now and still love it. Just curious to hear anyone's thoughts.
[more inside]
posted by camfys at 9:29 PM PST - 12 comments
The decision is made, and a Ruger Blackhawk .44 mag pistol I will buy. But, is the longer barrel better?
[more inside]
posted by Wulfgar! at 9:19 PM PST - 16 comments
how do i stop numlock being on from being the default when i logon to my IBM laptop. MI
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posted by alkupe at 8:34 PM PST - 5 comments
When I try to adjust the date and time on my pc, I get the ol' " Not responding" message. As a simple crustacean with limited skills, I need some help. {MI}
posted by lobstah at 7:44 PM PST - 8 comments
I have the latest PowerBook G4 and would like to set something up in my home to record spoken word. I'm looking for recommendations on preamps, microphones and maybe software. From what I have read GarageBand can record vocals just fine. Does anyone have any experience they could share on that subject as well? Cost isn't really an issue, but I don't need anything super fancy or complicated.
posted by whatevrnvrmind at 4:49 PM PST - 7 comments
So I upgraded from warty warthog to hoary hedgehog and something broke PHP on my box. Any ideas as to where I should look to fix this.
I already have:
DirectoryIndex index.html index.htm index.shtml index.cgi index.php
and
AddType application/x-httpd-php .php
AddType application/x-httpd-php-source .phps
in my httpd.conf file.
posted by outofpaper at 4:38 PM PST - 5 comments
The combined public broadcasting networks in the Netherlands put a lot of their shows online to be viewed (legally) after they air at
Uitzending Gemist (Missed Broadcast). Do broadcasters in your country offer a similar service?
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 3:19 PM PST - 5 comments
Does anyone have recommendations as to voice chat software for a forum? We'd ideally like to have a regulated chat room in vbulletin where one person has voice control (for a lesson type environment), but standalone software could work too (except paltalk). Ability to control who can enter the chat is a must.
posted by Mossy at 3:12 PM PST - 2 comments
I've decided to move on from my favourite
UltraEdit to the up and coming
SciTE. However, I have one annoying "feature" that's stopping me from falling in love with SciTE. I have yet to figure out how to stop it from creating separate instances when loading multiple documents.
[more inside]
posted by furtive at 2:20 PM PST - 3 comments
More "please identify this movie for me:" I'm trying to track down a horror movie featuring a taxidermied old lady and a maze.
[more inside]
posted by hilatron at 1:51 PM PST - 5 comments
I'm trying to market cool events happening at my (reputable) workplace to families with young children, and some other cool events to young professionals. We have a lovely and responsibly kept email list here of our own constituents, but we want to expand into new territory to promote events.
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posted by By The Grace of God at 1:19 PM PST - 2 comments
Lately, I've taken an interest in simple but slightly offbeat sans fonts, such as
Rotis,
Indosans,
Elemental, et.al.
What other sans fonts would you recommend that have clean, simple shapes, with some quirkiness and character mixed in?
[more inside]
posted by signal at 12:27 PM PST - 15 comments
BasicPhysicsFilter: Everything else being equal, how much would my vertical leap improve if I lost 10% of my weight without losing any muscle?
posted by callmejay at 12:16 PM PST - 11 comments
My mother-in-law has a new hobby: building (upscale) birdhouses out of salvaged materials. She'd like to sell a few pieces, but needs a catchy name for her enterprise. (Um, something better than my contribution, "Birdhouses by B.") Suggestions? Thanks.
posted by MonkeyToes at 11:23 AM PST - 41 comments
A friend needs to deposit sums of money in US quarters, and the bank wants him to count it himself and tell them how much exactly is there, or they'll charge him a fee for the wrong amount. It is usually about 50 pounds (about $1,000). He will not use the stupid "Star" machines and pay 6 or 10% "counting" fees. Any ideas of how to quickly count sacks of money? (he does not have kids)
posted by growabrain at 10:14 AM PST - 34 comments
Dear New York City Mefites, I've got a bit of an unexpected trip to your fair city and am looking for recommendations for hotels or hostels. I'm hoping you can recommend places that I'm missing because they either don't have a web page, or are buried beneath massive piles of seo inflated sites.
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posted by lpqboy at 10:10 AM PST - 19 comments
I'm coming to New York in August and want to take advantage of the dollar to top up my wardrobe, however my googleing for shops for the larger lady have not been fruitful. Can any ladies in NY give me any pointers?
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posted by floanna at 9:49 AM PST - 10 comments
I would like to start teaching myself JAVA and SQL but I'm not sure where to start in terms of what I need on my computer.
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posted by archimago at 9:34 AM PST - 25 comments
What site(s) would you recommend using to listen to live streaming audio of this year's men's NCAA tournament? Preferably free sites, but any recommendations are appreciated. Thank you.
posted by mic stand at 9:31 AM PST - 5 comments
Every day I leave for work feeling energetic, spend the morning the same, but by afternoon I am exhausted. (more inside)
[more inside]
posted by leapingsheep at 9:08 AM PST - 25 comments
I have recently quit smoking and thanks to the oral-fixation soothing powers of Altoids, I've been doing fairly well. Unfortunately...
[more inside]
posted by headspace at 8:26 AM PST - 40 comments
I love my car, but am becoming increasingly concerned about gas mileage and environmental responsibility. It isn't a guzzler, but I know I could do better. What are your experiences with diesel cars?
[more inside]
posted by odinsdream at 8:25 AM PST - 11 comments
I'm thinking about buying my first Mac, an iBook G4, 12". If I buy it today, with OS X "Panther", will I have to pay to upgrade to "Tiger" next month?
[more inside]
posted by bondcliff at 8:09 AM PST - 23 comments
Has anyone had any success with treatments for Borderline Personality Disorder?
posted by eggerspretty at 7:51 AM PST - 6 comments
I was wondering what the side effects and dangers of Salvia Divinorum are. Are there any mefites out there with experiences and/or information related to this plant?
[more inside]
posted by dazed_one at 7:46 AM PST - 15 comments
Unix folks: How can I recursively find all files with a certain string in their filename, replace that string with another string, and rename them with the new filename?
[more inside]
posted by turaho at 7:34 AM PST - 19 comments
As the fourth "collectively-signed birthday card for a colleague" this week passed my desk today I realised that I just couldn't come up with anything clever, trite, humourous, etc. to say....
[more inside]
posted by lazywhinerkid at 6:48 AM PST - 22 comments
Some of my MS Word docs (Microsoft Word 2003, Windows XP) have been through many hands and have many styles defined. Lots of these styles are garbage. Other than doing it manually (stepping through all of the styles one by one, checking whether each style is in use, and then deleting the styles I don't need), is there a way to remove all styles that are not used in a document?
posted by pracowity at 6:02 AM PST - 7 comments
March 16
A question from the young 'un I couldn't answer. There are lots of clean crisp flavours out there: why are toothpaste, floss and other dental/oral products stereotypically mint-flavoured, and not, say, clove or cinnamon? Is it simple popularity, or is there a technical reason?
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 11:49 PM PST - 24 comments
We are staging a fundraiser for a community radio station, based on two programmes; Black and Blue (The lowdown of beats and forgotten soul nuggets. Funk starts here) and Giant Steps (Jazz for the 21st Century)
We need a good name for the event. Something that sums up the styles of music and is catchy enough for a poster. Any suggestions?
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posted by sconbie at 10:14 PM PST - 10 comments
On the Mac, if I need to munge text in extremis, I prefer to use BBEdit. Recently, on the PC, I am finding myself in need of a text editor which is similar to BBEdit. I will use it both for coding and for text-cleaning. I prefer freeware and shareware but that's by no means the deciding factor. Which programs should I check out? Which should I avoid?
[more inside]
posted by mwhybark at 9:11 PM PST - 21 comments
YEEEEEE-HAW!! What movie did I see in the last ten years, in which our characters are watching a western in which people say the above approximately thirty times in succession?
[more inside]
posted by Aknaton at 7:06 PM PST - 6 comments
Deconstruct-the-magic-filter: In the latest series of HP commercials, there is this really neat effect where people wave photographs around and they meld seamlessly with the footage, and vice versa. How do they accomplish this? I'm not easily stumped by this kind of thing, but I really have no idea.
posted by phrontist at 6:13 PM PST - 11 comments
WeddingFilter: My wedding ceremony will be secular. A friend will officiate. So we need to plan out the ceremony on our own. What is your advice for planning a meaningful ceremony?
[more inside]
posted by about_time at 6:07 PM PST - 21 comments
I helped a friend set up a couple PayPal buttons to sell some things online, which worked great until we ran into a new kind of customer: the international. How can people outside the US who don't want/have Paypal accounts buy her stuff online?
posted by paul_smatatoes at 6:03 PM PST - 6 comments
The
last wive in the Desperate Housewives titles. Who is she? Is she from something? Does this style of cartoon have a name?
posted by cillit bang at 4:27 PM PST - 10 comments
Me and my boyfriend have discovered a strange thing - those little bobbles on the inside corners of your eyes will "pop" sometimes. Obviously everyone has the bobbles, but do yours "pop"?
[more inside]
posted by Lotto at 3:37 PM PST - 28 comments
I hung up a wet sweater on a hanger to dry, and now it has ;ugly hanger lumps on the shoulders. A few other sweaters are starting to flare out at the sleeves. Any tips on how to fix these without buying new sweaters? I don't have an iron.
posted by brownpau at 3:35 PM PST - 9 comments
Can anyone recommend a good KVM that will allow me to share my SVGA monitor, USB keyboard and mouse between a Mac Mini and PC?
posted by kickerofelves at 3:28 PM PST - 11 comments
Where can I find torrents (or other downloadable media) of Oprah's daily shows? Not surprisingly, Oprah isn't carried on most of the tv torrent sites.
posted by ahughey at 3:13 PM PST - 1 comments
vacation filter: recommendations for vacation spots in the next couple weeks? - off the beaten path, sun, surf, adventure, tranquility.
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posted by specialk420 at 3:12 PM PST - 17 comments
My
Wordpress-based site looks perfect in Firefox, but terrible in IE. Can someone with a few minutes give me some advice? Here's my
index.php and the
CSS. The problem seems to be the with my supernavcontainer div (which contains my menu at the top).
posted by exhilaration at 2:58 PM PST - 5 comments
My FAT32 Windows partition melted the other day; attempting to boot it now results in errors citing "nonvalid links" for most files on the system, unspecified errors, and a reboot. Fortunately a Linux partition on the same disk was unaffected and I've been able to use it to back up my data. Since the data is still accessible (nothing I've checked so far seems to be corrupted) I'm wondering if there is a way to rebuild the index/toc/whatever it is that's resulting in "nonvalid links" from Linux rather than having to reinstall everything.
I've never really used Linux for anything other than playing Tuft Racer and growing disillusioned about the promise of open source, but my guess is that the solution involves fsck. My efforts in that vein have been stymied by the error:
fsck: fsck.vfat: not found
and I don't know how to rectify that. Thank you AskMe I love you all in advance and I was just kidding with the open sores jab.
Please, I am writing this in emacs, send help
posted by moift at 2:17 PM PST - 7 comments
I had one when I was a kid, and I want one again. What do you call the tablet/thingy where you write or draw on a piece of plastic which is atop a waxy piece of cardboard, and when you don't what you've drawn or written anymore, you can peel the plastic up and make the thing you wrote/drew disappear? It came with a plastic writing implement. Does anyone make a smallish version that I can use at my desk?
posted by iconomy at 2:02 PM PST - 26 comments
After 5 years working my full time corporate programming day job I'm almost ready to give up the security to spend the majority of my time on exciting non-profit open source projects. But for various reasons I want to keep the corporate job on a consulting basis. Any advice on how to negotiate going from full time to part time?
[more inside]
posted by lips at 1:12 PM PST - 6 comments
I've received an e-mail addressed to someone else. How or why might this happen?
[more inside]
posted by normy at 12:31 PM PST - 24 comments
How do I transfer my saved passwords from Mozilla 1.7.1 to Firefox 1.0.1? The "Import" option under the File menu didn't work.
posted by punishinglemur at 12:25 PM PST - 2 comments
Please offer your recommendations on the best cheap/free .WMF/.EMF to .EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) conversion utility. Win98 or XP. Application: getting t-shirts silkscreened. Thanks.
posted by ZenMasterThis at 10:34 AM PST - 8 comments
I'm going to jump on the 'name that movie' bandwagon and ask for help in identifying two movies from the mid-80's (I think) -->
[more inside]
posted by widdershins at 9:49 AM PST - 20 comments
Which is better for a short term (3+/- mos): Hiring a nanny or sending your infant to child care? The child is coming on 15 months, and a second income is imperative.
[more inside]
posted by ValveAnnex at 9:37 AM PST - 9 comments
Examples of news websites that are are independently owned? I'm interested in sites that generate news (as opposed to just commentary), and that are not owned by traditional media outlets (as opposed to sites like Slate, which is owned by Washington Post).
posted by Polonius at 9:36 AM PST - 10 comments
I just bought a new PC and would like to set it up so I can wirelessly share a cable internet connection with an older mac.
[more inside]
posted by Kellydamnit at 9:19 AM PST - 5 comments
Is there a reliable, region-specific, and, most importantly, FREE source for movie listings that can be incorporated into another website (i.e. RSS feed)?
[more inside]
posted by bjork24 at 9:03 AM PST - 1 comments
I'm working on a project to bring a relatively new local GLBT newspaper online. Is there a CMS product (preferably open source) out there that I can setup for this purpose? My web skills are minor, so I'd like something as out of the box as possible that won't have me in fits trying to set it up. I know there are several options for non-open source software, but they get very expensive, very quickly.
[more inside]
posted by FlamingBore at 9:00 AM PST - 11 comments
Hello all. I have a problem that on some sites that hotlink images directly to me, the images are coming to me resized. For example, the page is doing a width="500" on every image, making larger images smaller, and smaller images larger. Is there a way to prevent this from happening? Happens in both IE and FF. And I'm not talking about the automatic image resizing option.
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posted by eas98 at 8:51 AM PST - 6 comments
How do musicians write songs? Do they typically write the words then the music to those words...or the other way around? Or does it happen spontaneously so that some artists do it either way depending on their influence?
posted by SparkyPine at 8:30 AM PST - 17 comments
What is the origin of the often-used phrase "conspiracy theory?"
posted by sonofsamiam at 8:06 AM PST - 14 comments
Does anyone know of an easy, quick method for heating up refrigerated corn tortillas? I love corn tortillas, and have found some great ones here in Brooklyn that I buy for a buck a package. (I like to eat tortillas and scrambled eggs for breakfast.) But I have had difficulty coming up with some way to warm corn tortillas both effectively and quickly. One way I have tried is to do each one on a hot iron skillet without grease. This works well, but takes a lot of time, about a minute or two per tortilla. I have tried heating them in a toaster oven, but this dries them out. A microwave makes them kind of chewy. My sense is that some method involving steam might work, but I haven't found it. Any ideas anyone? I'm sure that there exists an easy, simple method somewhere.
posted by Alex Marshall at 7:53 AM PST - 32 comments
I want to get a nice set of noise canceling headphones, and would appreciate some first-hand reviews.
[more inside]
posted by turtlegirl at 7:35 AM PST - 11 comments
ClassicLitFilter: I've been wanting to try out some of Honore de Balzac's books but don't know where to start - suggestions? Thanks in advance!
posted by Dallasfilm at 7:18 AM PST - 7 comments
My boss and wife are taking a trip to Napa and asking this ex-Californian for good restaurants, where would you send them...
[more inside]
posted by slew at 7:09 AM PST - 17 comments
does anybody have a gmail invitation which they could please forward to me? & if anybody else is interested, perhaps we could pay it forward
again?
[more inside]
posted by n o i s e s at 6:56 AM PST - 22 comments
MoneyFilter: I get paid in the US and I live and work pretty much everywhere (mainly Europe). I've had it trying to transfer chunks of cash between the US and abroad: it's slow, expensive and a pain-in-the-neck. Any electronic/web-based solutions to this that people have been happy with?
[more inside]
posted by costas at 6:55 AM PST - 19 comments
The MPEG website seems pretty dead. Is anyone doing anything interesting with MPEG-7? Is anyone doing anything interesting with MPEG-21?
posted by Pretty_Generic at 6:37 AM PST - 2 comments
I have set my screensaver to play "My Pictures Slideshow" and notice that some pictures appear much more frequently than others. I have noticed this with other programs as well. Is there a process or formula the processor uses in these cases. Is random really random?
posted by terrier319 at 6:28 AM PST - 12 comments
After a year of employment, my boss is suddenly asking me to use my skills in SQL. It has been a year since I used them, and I need to brush up.
[more inside]
posted by veronitron at 4:05 AM PST - 8 comments
I have a PDF file that doesn't want to print. The print commands are grayed out in Acrobat Reader. The lock symbol appears indicating that the document is encrypted to prevent modification of "certain aspects". However, I have other documents which appear to have similar encryption that print fine. Is the encryption causing this problem? If not, then what is? How can I work round the problem?
posted by nthdegx at 3:49 AM PST - 10 comments
How do you deal with post-traumatic stress? An incedent happened to me a couple of days ago that I just can't seem to shake...
[more inside]
posted by zardoz at 2:44 AM PST - 20 comments
Some years ago I saw a clock, which appeared to be made from 'valves' sticking out of a metal block...inside the valves was an old fashioned illuminated number. So the clock was digital, with old fashioned (think 60's space programme) orange digits...it was quite expensive, and now I have gainful employment and a half-decent house to put in, I want to track one down. Any ideas?
posted by mattr at 2:28 AM PST - 6 comments
How in the world can I keep Windows XP from automatically muting the speakers when headphones are plugged in?
[more inside]
posted by Stunt at 12:24 AM PST - 9 comments
March 15
What examples are there of consumer-grade open source software whose quality surpasses that of closed source, proprietary software?
[more inside]
posted by pealco at 11:18 PM PST - 24 comments
In the last week or so I came across a tool online for coffee shop owners who want to offer wifi to their customers. It was a mix between
friendster,
plazes, and a generic login system, where the user would create an account, tell the system a little about themselves, upload a photo, etc., and they'd be able to see who else was there at the coffee shop using the WiFi connection, and information about them too. I think it was open source and it seemed like a cool idea. I cannot find the link now, can anyone help?
posted by pwb503 at 11:02 PM PST - 1 comments
I have a Perl script which is supposed to handle user registration. It works fine from the command line (perl blah.pl "username=blah&password=blah") but doesn't modify the file it's supposed to modify when run as a CGI script in Apache 2.0.
[more inside]
posted by IshmaelGraves at 9:56 PM PST - 2 comments
One deck of cards. Two of us. What's the best game to play?
posted by sugarfish at 9:38 PM PST - 31 comments
I'm shopping around for good sunglasses to replace my battered old A Wires. I'm thinking about getting prescription lenses for whatever I buy. Anyone have any experience buying sunglasses with prescription lenses?
[more inside]
posted by showmethecalvino at 9:10 PM PST - 9 comments
I've gotten carded at a grocery store for buying Sticky-Tak, otherwise known as
adhesive putty. There has to be an explanation for it, but I don't know what it is. Send help.
posted by puke & cry at 9:07 PM PST - 14 comments
Can it be cost-effective to build your own kitchen cabinets from scratch vs. buying and installing them yourself?
[more inside]
posted by jacobsee at 7:43 PM PST - 19 comments
VOIP Saga, Episode IV. I've got a VoicePulse VOIP account. It's stable and doesn't sound bad; better than the cheaper BroadVoice(BroadVox?) account I canceled; and better than a cell phone. But is it possible that certain telephone
brands/models will actually make it sound better; closer to classic telephony?
posted by ParisParamus at 7:36 PM PST - 7 comments
So what happens when you accidentally inject 2 mLs of air directly into a vein via an IV?
[more inside]
posted by bh at 7:12 PM PST - 12 comments
Say you've got a political action website that you fund out of your own shallow pockets. Say that in addition to helping bring about what you see as positive political change, one of your motivations is to maybe find a name and/or good job for yourself in the future. Pretend it's successful, but in intangible ways. You're still poor and still hope to someday get out of your dreary 8-5 shit job. Say your site got noticed by the right people and is having the sort of effect you wanted it to, but you have a decision to make...
[more inside]
posted by anonymous at 6:15 PM PST - 29 comments
I don't understand the lyrics of a Billie Holiday song and a Robert Johnson song.
[more inside]
posted by rdr at 5:38 PM PST - 12 comments
I was asked for identification today, to purchase a gallon of mineral spirits at WalMart. Does anyone know if this is due to new legislation, or is WM doing this on their own? The clerk told me I could expect to be ID'd for many other items in the future.
I'm also curious if they think I'm making bombs or drugs.
posted by pekar wood at 4:08 PM PST - 36 comments
Was Dave Chapelle's R. Kelly "tribute" song, "Piss On You" based on an actual R. Kelly track?
[more inside]
posted by jimmereeno at 4:00 PM PST - 7 comments
I've recently trained a person in each of our branch offices into roles where they will be the IT Liaisons for the 40 or so people in that office. What should I get them for "graduation?"
[more inside]
posted by pomegranate at 3:21 PM PST - 12 comments
As the result of there being 3 simultaneous Ring Cycles going on in London right now, all of which I have been attending and enjoying immensely, I have become worryingly addicted to Wagner's tetralogy. Any recommendations for further reading that will deepen my understanding of the work?
[more inside]
posted by chill at 2:41 PM PST - 12 comments
What HTML editor would you give your dad? OK, it's not my dad, but you get the point. I'm looking for a
very simple WYSIWYG Windows HTML editor that will allow a computer novice to easily edit static pages on one of my hosted web servers.
[more inside]
posted by rolypolyman at 1:47 PM PST - 17 comments
Long story short, I have my yearly evaluation tomorrow. While I've rocked my way through 80 percent of my duties, there are two areas my new boss has marked for improvement in the coming year. How do I get the most out of the part of the evaluation where we
discuss my shortcomings? [more inside]
posted by deliriouscool at 1:26 PM PST - 13 comments
1. Are there maps anywhere that show the geographical distribution of ethnicities and religions accross different regions?
2. Or, does a program exist where I could plug in preference for different feilds (example: religion, climate, geography) and it would spit out the closest region to such specifications?
[more inside]
posted by scazza at 1:09 PM PST - 4 comments
So today, I was driving down the road in pretty thick traffic and had to hit my brakes really hard to avoid a crash. As always, with every adrenaline related incident, I got this very sudden tingly feeling all over, most notably in my neck. What is the physical cause of this? Muscles tightening, increased blood flow or something completely different?
posted by chiababe at 1:08 PM PST - 12 comments
I'm looking for a specific funny alarm clock that I saw about three or four years ago in Target.
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posted by daninnj at 12:54 PM PST - 5 comments
Speeddating advice. I've been roped into an event at the end of this month and on reflection I'm looking forward to it. Some tips and advice would be useful though.
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posted by i_cola at 12:30 PM PST - 13 comments
I've decided to buy my first ever laptop of my own (ie not a cast-off from a parent.) I know what I want it to do/have in functional terms, but I don't know enough about hardware to really make a truly educated choice.
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posted by Kololo at 12:21 PM PST - 23 comments
I am intrigued by Paradise Lost, but looking over it quickly in the bookstore … well it looks hard. Is there a nice graphic novel version which will gradually ease me into it?
posted by shothotbot at 12:14 PM PST - 15 comments
Please help! My laptop's screen hinges just recently became really loose--is this fixable, or am I screwed?
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posted by gramcracker at 12:04 PM PST - 4 comments
i am interested in recommendations for novels about british colonial period (india, africa, etc). what are your favorites?
posted by dstrouse91 at 11:27 AM PST - 27 comments
As a non-Catholic, I have a (very long) question about the depiction of American Catholicism in Richard Hofstadter's book
Anti-Intellectualism in American Life.
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posted by Prospero at 11:23 AM PST - 11 comments
Can you recommend a good long distance telephone provider? I'm in Toronto, I make perhaps 1-6 long distance calls a year, I call only within Ontario, and getting billed for monthly network fees regardless of whether I've called long distance that month really gets my tailfeathers in a twist.
posted by orange swan at 11:23 AM PST - 11 comments
I've fallen hard for Python and have been searching for a project to really learn the language with. I'd like to create functionality similar to Windows "Map Network Drive" for URIs using Python, urllib, etc. My questions are: does this seem possible for someone with a decent programming background (but no formal CS training)? Is it a good idea?
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posted by yerfatma at 11:22 AM PST - 8 comments
I am looking to buy a car for around $5-6000 dollars. What's the best way of finding a car online? Also, I know nothing about cars. What suggestions do you folks have for brands, features, etc. I should look for?
posted by xammerboy at 11:04 AM PST - 19 comments
I am trying to implement SQL mail fonctionnality for monitoring purpose under win2k / sql2k, only problem is to be configurer properly it must first obtain its parameter from Microsoft Mail API (MAPI) thru an already configured mail account, these are production servers and i don't feel too good about installing Outlook or Outlook express just to get an account configured so i can use this fonctionnnality. is there a way around this ?
I am aware of several monitoring solution offered by third parties and i accept proposition (please no astroturfin') but I want to get that build in feature to work first.. anyone ?
Thanks
Selfsck
posted by selfsck at 10:46 AM PST - 4 comments
I need help remembering a kids TV show where the main character was painted on a juice glass.
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posted by helvetica at 9:47 AM PST - 9 comments
Help us celebrate a joyous reunion! What are some of the best restaurants for vegetarians and vegans in San Francisco?
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posted by shirobara at 9:41 AM PST - 17 comments
I just upgraded to a Blackberry 7100t, and in my (crappy!) research totally missed the fact that the Bluetooth is crippled.
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posted by Mutant at 9:05 AM PST - 2 comments
iPod ShuffleFilter - can I charge my shuffle on a computer without iTunes? I'd like to leave it to charge on my work computer while out for lunch, but despite my Google Fu cannot find out if this is ok for the device.
posted by tr33hggr at 8:57 AM PST - 6 comments
I managed to install movable type to my server without a hitch, but on the mt-load.cgi page I got a long error...
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posted by hautenegro at 8:50 AM PST - 10 comments
I have a lot of cotton t-shirts, of the medium-to-heavy weight kind that usually have something printed on them. There seem to be two distinct kinds of cotton fabric in the shirts:
Good: After a few washes, the shirt becomes soft and kind of broken in. Bad: the shirt never really becomes soft or broken in, and worse, inevitably comes out of the dryer with (clean) lint and cat hair all over it. So I have two questions about this:
1. What accounts for the different outcomes for two 100% cotton shirts?
2. Is there any solution, ASIDE from using fabric softener? Any non-nasty alternatives to fabric softener?
posted by everichon at 8:29 AM PST - 9 comments
I've fallen in love with Chipotle peppers (specifically those packed in adobo sauce)...i'm looking for a few good, simple, recipes using these smokey and slimy little delights... [+]
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posted by tpl1212 at 6:44 AM PST - 29 comments
SafariFilter or AppleScriptFilter: I very often collect bookmarks of pages I'd like to look at in Safari, through the double magic of NetNewsWire and Saft. The problem is that I end up having one folder with 180+ bookmarks in it. I often then manually split them into chunks of 20 using cut and paste, but it strikes me that there's got to be an easier way to do that automatically via AppleScript. However, my
google-fu fails me in that respect.
Anyone know of a link to an AppleScript that takes one bookmark folder and splits it into folders with
x number of bookmarks each in them? Or any AppleScript master and MeFi resident out here savvy enough to whip one up for me?
I'll send you a cute picture of my cat sunning himself in a sunbeam, if you want. :)
posted by WCityMike at 6:17 AM PST - 4 comments
I'd like to store people's postcodes and work out distances between them. I think I need a postcode-to-coordinates database, and then a way of working out the distances...
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posted by reklaw at 5:16 AM PST - 11 comments
Is there a word in any language that means "wound that could have healed cleanly, but ended up as a very ugly scar"?
posted by Jairus at 5:06 AM PST - 18 comments
I'm working for a large, well-known organisation, which is looking for a content management system that will run well (and securely) on Windows 2003 servers.
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posted by bwerdmuller at 5:05 AM PST - 7 comments
I'm considering starting a coin laundry business. Can I have some suggestions for a good name? (It would be in Australia, so international pre-established names A-OK) Also has anyone here been in the business? Pitfalls, potential?
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posted by Dag Maggot at 3:44 AM PST - 36 comments
March 14
Why do some American transport companies named
"Yellow" paint their vehicles orange?
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posted by Rash at 9:14 PM PST - 12 comments
So, the Office Season 2 episode 1 opens up with a little impromptu song performance. What song and what is it from?
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posted by graventy at 8:25 PM PST - 10 comments
Calling Baltimore Mefites!!! I'm in a serious bind, I need a 1room place to live this week in Charles Village. All online resources are aimed at Hopkins kids and way over priced.
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posted by Grod at 8:15 PM PST - 6 comments
I have a TiVo with the TiVoToGo functionality, with which I can download .tivo files of my recorded shows. I also have about 10 Simpsons episodes I need to catch up on, and a trip starting tomorrow where I'll have some time to watch them. Problem: my main rig is a Powerbook, which doesn't support playing the .tivo files. What's the easiest, fastest way of whipping these files into shape? I have Windows and Linux pcs available for my bidding. Can I transcode the .tivo files on the PC to something more manageable?
posted by neustile at 6:53 PM PST - 12 comments
So I'm living Chico, a great bicycle town, and I got my treasured cruiser (over 6' long, black & cream, whitewall tires) out of storage. Bike theft and vandalism is a pretty big problem here, and I was wondering what people are using to lock their bikes in the wake of the
Kryptonite lock issues. Bonus points for something that doesn't make my cruiser much heavier than it already is.
posted by keswick at 5:29 PM PST - 16 comments
I'm wondering where one can go in the Detroit area to hear live music, specifically jazz, lounge or alt-country. If responses could provide a parking/dress code/vibe snapshot, I'd be grateful.
posted by boombot at 5:17 PM PST - 8 comments
My google-fu is failing me on this. I'm getting a new computer and my dad wants my old beast of a Dell. I don't need to clean my hard drive to DOD-specs, but it does seem reasonable to do more than just delete my files. It's not busted, the Windows 98 is pretty beat up, but it's still usable. What's the sane minimum of clean-up before it leaves my house?
posted by desuetude at 4:49 PM PST - 9 comments
Photographers and videographers: How are you insuring your gear? I've started to look into insurance for my recently-acquired DSLR, and I'm having trouble finding insurers that cover photo equipment, particularly equipment that goes to other countries with me.
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posted by xo at 4:27 PM PST - 3 comments
I just got a Motorola V600 to replace my old and quite-literally-busted cell phone. For any fellow V600 users on MeFi: do you have any tips and tricks, fun hacks, or other useful inforrmation for this phone?
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posted by symphonik at 4:06 PM PST - 6 comments
So on Saturday at the Ferry Building Farmer's Market,
Prather Ranch had a special on Eye of Round beef. Being a sucker for getting a giant piece of meat at less than half-price, I am now the proud owner of a 5 lb Eye of Round. So, uh, now what should I do with it?
posted by rorycberger at 4:03 PM PST - 14 comments
My wife and I are having a son in a few months. We've been working on doing something special for his bedroom. I've noticed that a theme can be forced on you if your not careful (someone gets your kid an Elmo doll and next thing you know, it's all Elmo all the time.) I'd like to avoid that. I was thinking about doing something sorta retro sci-fi... rockets and stuff...
Anyone know a good source for 50's sci-fi decor? I know it's a little early to go crazy but, it's not everyday you have a son...
posted by Shanachie at 3:33 PM PST - 13 comments
What are some of your favorite choices for finding streaming music on the internet?
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posted by mert at 2:55 PM PST - 20 comments
I have decided on a much-needed career change, and find that the list of schools willing to take on a prospective second-bachelor's engineering candidate is quite short. Anyone know of good EE or CE programs on the west coast which are more open to second-bac students?
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posted by plexiwatt at 2:19 PM PST - 6 comments
I've been searching for the name of a gothic horror movie from the late 60s or early 70s. A number of astronauts land on a planet that is populated by tall upside-down-carrot-shaped creatures that have an infrared eye. One by one the astronauts meet terrible deaths. One astronaut is burned to death by one of the carrot aliens in a very graphic way. Another walks into a sphere that appears near the space craft and is flash-frozen. I recall seeing this gore-fest on television as part of weekly horror/scifi movie time. The movie has some of the same feel as Journey to the Far Side of the Sun (1969). Does this movie sound familiar? Does anyone know the title?
posted by jhritz at 1:27 PM PST - 6 comments
Italicizing one certain paragraph in a page with CSS layout causes IE to break the layout. Moz/Firefox, however, remain unfazed.
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posted by Tuwa at 1:25 PM PST - 9 comments
I am looking for a free font that can be used royalty free (ie. 100% free in all respects) in potentially commercial material.
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posted by iamcrispy at 1:20 PM PST - 8 comments
Okay, so I'm looking for the name of the album a particular bit of spoken word is on. I did I search on Google, and the only match said that the bit in question is from The Meatmen. Unfortunately, they didn't say what album it was from. (warning: text is of questionable taste, so I put it in the "more inside" section)
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posted by NewGear at 1:16 PM PST - 4 comments
I am currently shopping for a scanner and cordless power tools. I am considering factory reconditioned models. What are peoples experiences, good and bad, with this?
posted by flummox at 12:22 PM PST - 8 comments
Philosophy 101: What is 'ontology'? For a while now I've been using the word ontology to mean an unspoken and taken-for-granted theory of the world. I've used it as a kind of opposite to epistemology, and congruent with the distinction (in my mind at least) between tacit and explicit. Last year I was mugged by some philosophers who said that I just could not do that. Am I right? Am I wrong? Useful resources? Help!
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posted by carter at 10:40 AM PST - 22 comments
WTF is happening to the tv show known as MI-5 here in the States and as Spooks in the UK? Spoilers inside if you haven't yet seen season 3, especially episode 10 'The Suffering of Strangers'.
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posted by matildaben at 10:06 AM PST - 8 comments
My wife and I are in the market for a new queen-sized mattress for our platform bed (Valencia platform bed from Pottery Barn).
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posted by cahlers at 10:05 AM PST - 13 comments
Is learning to snowboard inherently dangerous? Is there anything you can do to make it safer?
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posted by smackfu at 9:08 AM PST - 23 comments
I just bought a spiffy new HP laptop. I declined the third-party extended warranty at the time of purchase...
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posted by enrevanche at 8:57 AM PST - 2 comments
My credit card company just pulled a quick one on me. Despite my best efforts to resolve the situation with their customer service, I am going nowhere. What should be my next step?
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posted by tuxster at 8:42 AM PST - 23 comments
I have gmail. Is it possible for people using applications like Eudora, Outlook, etc. to know if/when I have "opened" and read emails they have sent to me?
posted by availablelight at 8:26 AM PST - 7 comments
Can I get recommendations on a high quality, stylish side bag to be used day to day for business? Needs to be rugged enough to withstand travel and fashionable enough to be able to bring into a business meeting.
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posted by jeremias at 8:15 AM PST - 21 comments
I am a Macintosh user who has just acquired a Nikon D70 digital SLR. Most of my photography experience is with film-based equipment; I have no experience maintaining a collection of digital photos. The software bundled with the camera seems questionable, and iPhoto drives me nuts.
What do other amateur (or professional) photographers use to manage their photographs? Will iPhoto do the job? What habits should I develop? What software should I use?
Any tips or tricks to help ease me into the world of digital photography?
posted by jdroth at 7:18 AM PST - 28 comments
Chatting with a muscal friend, I was stumped on a topic we wandered into: Excluding the obvious
(American Pie, Sweet Home Alabama) what are your favorite songs about other songs (or failing that music in general)?
posted by jalexei at 7:05 AM PST - 116 comments
I am buying a set of 500 poker chips online. I have an option to customize the number of chips of each color and need help please...
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posted by kenaman at 7:04 AM PST - 10 comments
I've plowed through a lot of Flash sites, but haven't found an answer to what I thought would be a simple question. Y'all are a buncha geniuses here, so I thought I'd ask you.
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posted by jpburns at 5:08 AM PST - 6 comments
Can I purchase either a used or new mobile phone from someone other than my provider and have it activated on my current account?
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posted by Item at 12:24 AM PST - 8 comments
March 13
Two active thirtysomething guys, two to three weeks in Slovenia and/or Croatia this (late) summer. What should we do? Ideally mix up the vigorous outdoors with the culture and the relaxing. Offbeat/non-guidebook advice is particularly welcome.
posted by gottabefunky at 11:54 PM PST - 16 comments
Does anyone know of a software package, preferably open source, that would be good for managing an on-line academic journal? I would need it to handle both presentation on-line and submissions through a complicated back-end.
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posted by ontic at 10:35 PM PST - 15 comments
Is there a free, online database of lawsuits filed in the US? My Google-fu is no match for awesome super-powerful search engine spam...
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posted by stringbean at 10:17 PM PST - 15 comments
Even with the big March event coming up, this is a hypothetical question. In a state like California, is there a legal way to bet on sports? Also, are there grey areas in betting, such as internet betting?
posted by jonah at 9:52 PM PST - 4 comments
My PC died and so I took all my CD saved files to place on my Mac. Here's the rub, many of the files (esp. media files) now have truncated and extremely garbled names. Mac OS9 has a 31 character limit, while PCs have a lot more. Is there any tricky way to increase the size of filenames on OS9? Its hundreds of files, so renaming them is out of the question.
posted by fucker at 7:58 PM PST - 7 comments
So, now I want to
dump AOL Instant Messenger, and convince all of my friends and relatives to do the same. I want something that isn't too fly-by-night, so I can be sure it'll last, and it's gotta have a little higher usability-quotient than I recall ICQ ever having. Ease of use on-par with AIM (so non-tech-savvy family can install it and set it up) is important, too. Any suggestions?
posted by Plutor at 7:50 PM PST - 26 comments
I admit that I am the daughter of Chaos. I seem to have zero organizational skills when it comes to objects, use of space, and clutter. I would like to hire someone to come organize my house, create a logical system whereby things are stored, and walk me through clearing the detritus of my mad packrat tendencies. To whom do I turn for this sort of skill set?
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posted by dejah420 at 7:10 PM PST - 11 comments
I have a dog who loves to bark at one household member. Nobody knows why. I bought her a citronella collar and this has helped greatly. But now she barks to her hearts content any time she's not wearing it. How do I train her to not bark even when she's not wearing the collar?
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posted by duck at 7:09 PM PST - 17 comments
I just watched Harold and Maude for the first time in several years. The intense "and there was a blinding flash!! kill!! kill! " monologue by Uncle Victor triggered a synapse in my brain and I KNOW this is sampled somewhere in a song.
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posted by glenwood at 7:00 PM PST - 7 comments
What was the first match played using Football Association rules?
posted by Dreamghost at 6:53 PM PST - 4 comments
Where can I find a
dictionary of words spelled backwards, listed in alphabetical order, preferably accessible via WWW? This kind of book used to be a common tool for cryptographers back before everything was done by machine, but I'm not a spook; I just like Oulipo-style wordplay. I used to know what this was called, but no longer do, and have googled "reverse dictionary", "backwards dictionary", "yranoitcid", and many more terms with no success.
Suggestions for similar dictionaries, such as ones in which all the letters of the words are sorted alphabetically (mouse->emosu) are also welcome. Thanks.
posted by rwhe at 6:42 PM PST - 24 comments
I'm having a problem with some javascript, and comp.lang.javascript has not been much help. Any mefites care to try their hand?
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posted by smcniven at 6:18 PM PST - 10 comments
In the market for some sort of non-car auto-transport, need help...
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posted by ac at 4:29 PM PST - 14 comments
I'm a graduating senior and am considering getting into the Computer/Video games industry. I've seen a few comments from insiders/ex insiders and could use some advice. Should I enter the industry? What should I look for in companies that I apply to?
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posted by JZig at 1:45 PM PST - 7 comments
I just bought a Ryobi miter saw for a couple small home improvement projects (hand rail installation and base board cuts), so the saw will pay for itself in pretty short order. Still, I don't want to watch it collect dust when I'm done.
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posted by Scoo at 11:11 AM PST - 12 comments
I've been fascinated for a while by actions that we can take simply by saying that we're taking them. I recently found out these are called "performative utterances"; the classic examples are firing someone by saying "You're fired", or getting married by saying "I do (take him/her to be my...)". These things pop up all the time in mathematics (in fact one might say that mathematics consists almost entirely of such statements). What are some other arenas where they arise naturally? Are there other parts of life that are almost completely performative in this sense? Any favorite examples?
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posted by gleuschk at 10:07 AM PST - 71 comments
My fiancée and I are currently in the thick of planning our August wedding. Is there something like
Basecamp that I can install on my home server to help us keep track of the thousand-and-one-details?
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posted by docgonzo at 9:53 AM PST - 8 comments
I'm thinking about buying a bread machine. Should I pony up the extra cash for an expensive brand like the Zojirushi? Is anyone happy with a less expensive model? (please say yes)
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posted by bibliowench at 9:18 AM PST - 28 comments
I'm trying to make the switch from IE to Firefox but I'm needing a couple of extensions before I can dump IE. I use
IE Spell to spell check web forms and right-click post to
del.icio.us to bookmark pages in
del.icio.us. Does anyone know of any similar extensions for Firefox? Thanks in advance!
posted by nalihasan at 8:28 AM PST - 4 comments
In Built to Spill's song "You Were Right" (from 1999's
Keep it Like a Secret) Doug Martsch samples the lyrics of many Classic rock tunes. He steals from Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, the Stones, Bob Seger, the Beatles, Kansas and so on. I pretty much know all the references, save one. From which classic rock gem is the line "do you ever think about it" from? This has been bugging me for many years, as I should know it.
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posted by psmealey at 7:43 AM PST - 16 comments
I've recently decided that I want to change my career path from an IT technician to project management.
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posted by shawnj at 7:31 AM PST - 13 comments
March 12
This summer, I'd like to travel to Iqaluit, the capitol of Nunavut in Canada. I've been fascinated with the place for years, and this spring would be the perfect chance to go see it. What's the best way of getting there?
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posted by spinifex23 at 8:28 PM PST - 6 comments
Is it possible to safely separate the hemispheres of the brain? If so, can I ever have such a surgery done?
posted by jimmy at 6:03 PM PST - 22 comments
Trusting soul I am, I expect a decent severance package from my employer. HR said I was entitled to a severance package (14 weeks). Should I get that in writing? And have any of you had to use a lawyer to get what you expect, to make sure there are no 'misunderstandings'?
posted by inchoate at 4:35 PM PST - 8 comments
BachFilter: I've been listening to John Williams' phenomenal rendition of J.S. Bach's Chaconne. So what other must-have recordings of this masterpiece (not just violin/cello/guitar...) should I seek out?
posted by noius at 3:45 PM PST - 12 comments
I'm currently using an Office Max $79 special that's doing horrible things to my back. Candidates must swivel, tilt, have adjustable arms, etc., but I'm not expecting an Aeron. Either mesh or standard cushion (not leather or similar) acceptable.
posted by words1 at 2:38 PM PST - 9 comments
I know Windows XP has some sort of restore feature, but how about a good independent program that can let me take a "snapshot" of my new clean WinXP installation + Documents and Settings + Program Files so I can maybe burn to (probably multiple) DVDs and then easily restore at some point in the future. (This must be a common thing, but my googling proved unfruitful.)
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posted by parma at 2:17 PM PST - 12 comments
Does anyone have some good info on writer Langston Hughes, aside from obvious Google sources? Any information gotten off the beaten path? I'd love to get some relatively unknown info on him, if anyone has it, or some particulary good access sites/books. Writing a paper and am tired of following everyone elses footsteps with information access.
posted by codeofconduct at 1:32 PM PST - 15 comments
My house still has some knob and tube wiring. I am concerned, in particular, with the ceiling light fixture in my home office where I just installed a new light. Neither wire was marked as hot or neutral, and my voltmeter read the same thing no matter which way I touched the wires. So I figured I had a fifty-fifty chance of getting it right. Will anything bad happen if I got the lamp wires connected to the wrong source wires? How can I tell which wire is which in the future?
posted by booth at 12:54 PM PST - 12 comments
I've taken on a little mini project and I think the best way to get the job done will be to use one of those little bits of software which can copy and then simulate mouse movements etc.
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posted by uk_giffo at 12:39 PM PST - 14 comments
How would a nobody consumer go about contacting a major corporation about adding a new area to an existing piece of software? This software in question is already updated all the time, it seems like it would be easily implemented, and would bring in new revenue.
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posted by ArsncHeart at 11:39 AM PST - 9 comments
Mystery object: we bought this ewer (or pitcher?) 10 years ago in a flea market in France and we haven't been able to figure out its purpose, origin and age.
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posted by elgilito at 11:07 AM PST - 26 comments
Coffee Walnut Chocolate Chunk Cookies. Originally known from David's Cookies, in NYC. Recipe?
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posted by Goofyy at 9:53 AM PST - 5 comments
I want to find out how to get a durable glossy lacquered(?) wood finish for pseudo wooden instrument cases. I know almost nothing about varnish/lacquer. My
last attempt resulted in this, which is definitely the right look for the finish, but the problem is that it's far more prone to damage than it should be, such that I now feel I should try to keep the surface covered and protected, which makes me reluctant to actually ever take it out of the closet or use it.
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posted by -harlequin- at 9:48 AM PST - 11 comments
How can I get Microsoft Access 2000 to default to full-screen mode when I open a second instance?
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posted by frykitty at 8:35 AM PST - 4 comments
Looking for a french melancholic song in the "Chanson française moderne" style, with one perhaps two voices singing. The only line in the lyrics that I vaguely remember is "On a 25 ans, on est déjà vieux". I heard it about 6 years ago. Does this ring a bell for someone?
posted by ruelle at 7:07 AM PST - 1 comments
Does anyone know a store in the Perth (Western Australia) metro area that sells 900mAh NiMH AAA batteries?
posted by krisjohn at 5:04 AM PST - 2 comments
I've never had great results ripping vinyl. I still have my 1980 vintage Pioneer turntable, and a receiver that has phono inputs, but the files never sound that good, and noise filtering didn't do much.
Also, I really only need to rip about 3-4 albums. While I'm sure the gods of karma will arrange for some to finally be released on CD or iTunes just after I go to the hassle of copying, I'm also sure 2 will never be "officially" released.
Anyone have a vinyl ripping service they would recommend?
posted by Marky at 3:47 AM PST - 8 comments
I used to own a tape of Marty Balin's "Hearts", recorded live on a TV show, with a guitar solo that would peel paint off a wall . . .
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posted by Neiltupper at 3:41 AM PST - 4 comments
anyone else having difficulty getting into bloglines at the moment? Nothing seems to be there right now. Is this the result of being taken over by the load of idjuts at AskJeeves?
posted by juniorbonner at 3:37 AM PST - 5 comments
I'm looking for a small network mail app (freeware, preferably) to use in a small business.
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posted by tomble at 3:07 AM PST - 5 comments
March 11
At the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, in the modern art/photography section there's a photo (from 1997 or thereabouts) of a man standing in a hotel room in a rainy day. It's a huge print, probably 5'x4', and is lit from behind. It's not on the Met's website. Does anyone know the name of the photo/photographer?
posted by incomple at 10:38 PM PST - 4 comments
Please help me find a store that carries the "original" (pre-2002 or so) original Levi's 501 jeans.
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posted by aberrant at 10:17 PM PST - 8 comments
I saw a great unsigned print tonight, and am really curious to know who the original artist was. The print was roughly 4'x3', with a dark seductive background. Two women were seated at a table, one was staring toward the viewer at a candelabra, the other was leaning away from the viewer, over the table, provocatively, drinking from a glass of wine.
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posted by togdon at 9:56 PM PST - 9 comments
Are there any good Viking movies? Total cheese OK.
posted by argybarg at 9:23 PM PST - 22 comments
The lights in my house occasionally pulse--that is, they'll rapidly get noticeably dimmer and brighter numerous times within a matter of just a few seconds. I'd say "flicker," but they never seem to actually go completely dark. Does this indicate faulty wiring, or something else?
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posted by kimota at 8:57 PM PST - 11 comments
Tech/Business: Say I were to conduct a feasibility study for social networking via mobile phones. I would like the service to enable people to define their relationships and be alerted when a specified contact is nearby (e.g., within 30m/100ft) - provided that contact has set themselves to be "findable" to that person. Is this already being done? If so, where can I find more information? If not, is this viable? Do we have the technology? How do I turn it into a profitable venture?
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posted by Lush at 8:40 PM PST - 8 comments
Anyone know of useful resources regarding travel to/in Xinjiang Province, China?
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posted by numble at 7:41 PM PST - 3 comments
I am trying to track down information on the distance from an LCD screen where text of a given size would still be legible.
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posted by pasd at 6:33 PM PST - 6 comments
I want a bicycle for casual, here-and-there riding on city streets. I want to spend under $150 CDN (~$125 USD). I don't mind buying used. What should I look for? What should I know before I go shopping? I know nothing about bicycle repair & maintenance. Bonus for Vancouver-specific tips.
(Other Bicycle threads were for different needs/budgets).
posted by ori at 6:03 PM PST - 24 comments
I'm trying to figure out the names of two different cartoons I watched when I was little. One was vehicle based and the other had a Frog Captain... this has been driving me crazy.
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posted by Neosamurai85 at 6:00 PM PST - 4 comments
i need a new pair of dress pants. the problem is that i can't find *anything* that isn't for chubby people! even when I go a waist-size down from what I am (to 30), the pants fit at the waist and then slightly balloon out until the legs taper. I've checked Daffy's, Sym's, Century 21, Banana Republic, Zara (all in NYC). No luck. Can a guy find a pair of slim, "sexy-ish" dress pants any more (ie 60s-style), or is our country just too fat? And i'm not talking about a pair of $300 Prada pants, those are out of the question. Can anyone help?
posted by yonation at 4:07 PM PST - 22 comments
I am exasperated. I ordered an iBook from Apple on February 23 and it still has not shipped. Each time I call, I am assured that it is shipping today. Regardless, as it has not happened since Tuesday, I have decided to look into PC alternatives. Apple's primary allure was its "instant-on" ability. Any PC suggestions?
posted by ajr at 3:54 PM PST - 24 comments
Example:
------------
my $include_file_name = 'include.pm';
use $include_file_name;
posted by bryanzera at 3:06 PM PST - 5 comments
I've got a torrent file that uses the old Lokitorrent tracker, so it's unusable as is. This much, I know. My problem is that I can't figure out how to make it work otherwise. I have tried changing the tracker address, but I'm learning quickly that if the tracker I point to isn't listing this file, it's of no use. Is there another way around this problem? It's a file I've been waiting MONTHS for.
posted by LGCNo6 at 2:39 PM PST - 9 comments
A friend recently told me about an old samurai movie he saw in high school. All he can remember about it is the basic points of the plot. The main character is a guy whose clan is killed by a rival clan of samurai. From what my friend tells me, the movie mostly consists of the main character training and preparing himself to get revenge. In the end, he goes to the rival clan and kills all of them except for their leader. The leader, in turn, kills the main character. I know it's vague, but does this plot sound familiar to anyone? What is the movie called?
posted by joedan at 1:41 PM PST - 10 comments
I used to be able to read for hours. Now I'm lucky if I can read for ten minutes before checking my e-mail. What to do?
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posted by trey at 1:22 PM PST - 29 comments
So we set up this webcam to watch our puppy while at work. We were shocked to find out that the dog walker we hired never came to walk her. She continued to neglect her duties all week. What to do? Is there somwhere I can report this dogwalker?
On the plus side, our puppy does totally fine while being left alone for 8 hours, with paper to do her business and some water and lots of toys!
posted by eurasian at 12:40 PM PST - 16 comments
Can anyone suggest eBay sniper software. There's lots about but I'm leery about releasing either credit card details or my eBay login. If it's UK compatible that would also be a plus!
posted by dmt at 12:35 PM PST - 14 comments
I'm looking for an artist (Russian, I think) who paints landscapes with faces inside them.
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posted by OmieWise at 12:08 PM PST - 10 comments
I'm a newbie to the Steampunk genre looking for suggestions. I've been starting on some of the early speculative SF stuff, like Jules Verne, Wells and Burroughs. Where should I go now?
posted by Dante5Inferno at 11:53 AM PST - 26 comments
Any tips on how to make Sensitive Plants (the fern-like ones that close their leaves when you touch them) thrive? I can usually keep them pretty happy for a few months, but they gradually become more and more unresponsive and eventually die. I'm in Southern California and will be moving to a new place with a greenhouse, and am fairly ignorant in the ways of plant-tending. Another question, just for sucking as much possible information out of this as possible: Anyone have any indoor plants they really like? If so, how do you make *those* thrive?
posted by sirion at 10:45 AM PST - 10 comments
I have a friend who lives in Canada while her boyfriend is just finishing up a psychology degree in England. He wants to move to Canada in the summer but there is the problem of not being able to get a job as a UK citizen. What are the requirements for British citizens to be able to work and live in Canada for an extended period of time (say several years at least)? They are not willing to get married yet. Any advice or previous experiences would be extremely helpful!
posted by degnarra at 10:18 AM PST - 12 comments
A friend who is 8 weeks pregnant recently had an ultrasound. The computer said that she was only 6 weeks pregnant. She suspected that the baby might have died two weeks ago, which is why it has remained at a 6 week size. However, the levels of hormones in her blood continue to rise as if she were pregnant. Is more likely the the baby is just somehow undersized, or that the baby has died but the pregnancy has continued?
posted by stray at 10:11 AM PST - 22 comments
The New Wave classic "Turning Japanese" by the Vapors opens with a short musical phrase signifying "stereotypical Asian music". You've heard it in many other places, usually (these days) for comedic effect. Did this phrase originate in any actual Asian composition? Or is it purely a Western invention?
posted by jjg at 10:08 AM PST - 18 comments
I need a few hundred to a few thousand general knowledge or trivia questions that I can integrate into a application I'm writing.
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posted by Mitheral at 9:38 AM PST - 8 comments
Movie Night. I'm helping plan a Horror/SciFi Movie Marathon for a few friends. I need to come up with a list of 4-6 movies available on DVD in the U.S., and am looking for a theme to tie it all together. Any ideas?
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posted by FreezBoy at 8:48 AM PST - 44 comments
Several days ago, my daughter dumped a bowl of cereal onto (and into, some) my Dell laptop. I have been trying to determine if I should just get a new one, or if this one is salvageable. . .it turns on, but is not sufficiently functional at this point.
I have exhausted all of the online info that I know if, including Dell's knowlege base.
I am not looking for tech support here, but does anyone know of a forum, or non-Dell knowlege base, or such, that they trust and find exceptionally helpful?
posted by Danf at 8:45 AM PST - 8 comments
I am having a problem with our account app / server; I need to apply a hot fix to the sql db and the files are encrypted. When trying to decrypt the file, I get varied error messages. Any MCSE / encryption Guru's in the house?
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posted by AllesKlar at 8:36 AM PST - 1 comments
Can anyone recommend any frequently-updating blogs that cater to first time home owners/buyers, mostly geared towards DIY repairs and upgrades?
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posted by nitsuj at 8:05 AM PST - 6 comments
I recently bought the new Kings of Leon CD. It won't let me play it without downloading some b.s. DRM software and it won't let me burn to iPod. How do I get around this?
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posted by spicynuts at 7:51 AM PST - 37 comments
Is it possible to configure MS Sharepoint to allow access from the Safari web browser?
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posted by mkultra at 7:35 AM PST - 0 comments
Can someone please help me access Gmail despite my companies officious blocking policy?
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posted by Vaska at 7:28 AM PST - 39 comments
Where to find a cheap digital camera? I want to sell some accumulated crapola on eBay, while keeping the overhead as low as possible.
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posted by ackptui at 4:52 AM PST - 14 comments
Okay, despite my dislike for Star Wars, my father
loved it. When I was about 3, he took us to a showing of the first three movies. I have not seen the fourth and fifth because I was waiting to do the same for the sixth. Now that my father has passed away (last year, don't worry) it reaffirms my desire to go to a showing of all three movies even though I'm not a fan of the series. Where/how can I get tickets before they degenerate into an eBay frenzy? Which is to say, I'd like to get them before they are scalped/resold, because I'm not interested in paying huge money. Any sites to watch/feeds I can monitor?
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posted by Eideteker at 4:34 AM PST - 6 comments
Could someone point me to a list of current professional sports team owners, especially owners of NFL and NBA teams? Googling keeps bringing up fantasy football sites.
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posted by nyterrant at 4:14 AM PST - 8 comments
Let's say you've had an experience and written about it. And let's say it's something others on the internet might want to know about. And let's say you have it saved as a simple html doc and would like to get it out there, accessible via Google, etc. And let's say you'd like perfect anonymity. What can you do to get it out there and indexed but not traceable? Free? Anonymous? Publish and forget?
Obviously, this is about battling spammers at some point. Advice?
posted by scarabic at 12:19 AM PST - 16 comments
March 10
Music production software: I need a beatfixer. I've got recordings of a live percussion ensemble. I've also got electronic/sequenced music that I want to mashup with the live percussion. The live ensemble recording -- what with the humans and all -- has tempo fluctuations: that's a big problem for mashing. I want a music processing tool that will "straighten out" the live recording so that the live track will stay in sync with the electronic track.
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posted by Moistener at 11:01 PM PST - 11 comments
I'm going to be in San Francisco for a conference from 3/14-->3/18, but sadly not the emerging technology conference. Anyway, I was wondering if there is anything like Japan's Akihabara--some sort of dense flea market with strange gadgets and such, that I might visit.
Any sort of robot-themed "performance" involving flammable materials would be cool too, but I've heard that Survival Research Labs isn't allowed to play in the city any longer.
In short, what would be some cool geeky/techy things to do while there that might not be available elsewhere and won't land me in jail?
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posted by mecran01 at 10:28 PM PST - 9 comments
Has anyone signed up for one of these sketchy-looking "get free stuff for being a product tester" sites? (
example.) What disaster, if any, has befallen you? What expensive personal electronic devices, if any, have you received for "free"?
posted by Tubes at 10:01 PM PST - 10 comments
Everytime I try to use Internet Explorer a content Advisor box pops up asking for a password. The problem is I've never set a password and I have no idea why this has started popping up. It also pops up when I try to use solitaire or the Windows calculator. Does anyone know of a master password or some other way to circumvent this?
posted by berek at 9:04 PM PST - 9 comments
I have run into an unpleasant Apache concurrency problem, whereby the ongoing download of a large file spontaneously and silently hangs ~90 seconds after another request to the server is made. Error logging set at the highest level reveals nothing. Any idea what may be causing this? (Apache/2.0.52, Win2K Professional)
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posted by Danelope at 8:35 PM PST - 16 comments
I have an interview at a national magazine next Friday and was wondering if anyone has interviewed at a magazine, and if so, if you could tell me what they ask.
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posted by moooshy at 7:41 PM PST - 6 comments
I'm looking for a good way to tweak bunches of files. I'm pretty sure there's been a question about this before, and "Batch Rename" was recommended. Looking for other recommendations, or advice on Batch Rename.
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posted by agropyron at 7:31 PM PST - 9 comments
Every Thursday morning without fail, I get my newspaper only to find that someone has stolen the Food and Drink section. This is my favorite section of an otherwise worthless paper (the AJC) and I want to catch the thief in the act so I can dole out the appropriate punishment and prevent this from happening again. I live in an apartment along a long corridor and the paper is delivered directly to my door. How do I catch the thieving punk who ruins my Thursday mornings?
posted by TheGoldenOne at 7:11 PM PST - 39 comments
You're at the movies trying to enjoy a show, when much to your dismay, you discover you're sitting right in front of a couple of very noisy moviegoers (the annoying kind that don't even bother to whisper & feel the need to comment after every scene). You turn around and politely ask them to keep it down. Unfortunately, ten minutes later they're at it again. Short of getting up and moving to another seat, what do you do?
posted by invisible ink at 5:23 PM PST - 59 comments
I play rudimentary guitar and am looking for a book that will give me the chords and words for loads of the 'classic' tunes that people like to hear in the pub or round the campfire. (That's classic as in popular and timeless not classical...)
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posted by penguin pie at 4:55 PM PST - 14 comments
I'm in the US, about to finish a graduate degree in about a year and a half, and I am interested in a career in international developmnent, and I was curious what different options I might have. Do any MeFiers have recommendations what areas I could go into? Pay is a concern for me, as I have fairly significant debt from undergraduate and graduate school, so I was not really looking at the nonprofit side as much. I was thinking of government or private sector, but I wanted to know what thoughts you all might have. Can I do private sector without working for some place that's exploitative? I'm really not sure what's out there past basic government jobs, so maybe someone has some suggestions. I've looked at books too, but i figured asking MeFiers might be good.
posted by jare2003 at 3:35 PM PST - 10 comments
Where do I post a call for bloggers? (This is not my call for bloggers.)
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posted by o2b at 3:07 PM PST - 8 comments
It's driving me crazy. There's these new South Park commercials on Comedy Central that's a take on some interstitial, show intro, or commercial from my childhood (born in '76). It's the quasi-pinball roller coaster ad, where the silver ball goes by and flips up 3 flags. What are these ads a parody of?
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posted by rampy at 2:42 PM PST - 24 comments
My favorite sweaters are made of wool. They're dry-clean-only. And they're also stretched out and don't look that great anymore. How can I shrink them just a little bit to get them back to their original size? Oh, and any advice on preventing/removing pilling?
posted by SpecialK at 2:30 PM PST - 7 comments
I want to try monitoring my own blood sugar levels and linking it with energy, mood etc. How to go about this?
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posted by BleachBypass at 2:12 PM PST - 18 comments
At work I have two Macs that I use (An iMac and a Powerbook), one with Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac, and one with Microsoft Office v. X. Is there any automated way to keep the contacts lists in both copies of Entourage in sync?
posted by Steve_at_Linnwood at 1:52 PM PST - 2 comments
Is there any javascript, Firefox plugin/extension or utility out there which would enable me to bookmark every link on a webpage automatically?
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posted by Dreama at 1:31 PM PST - 3 comments
Help me find a quotation that I've seen in Slashdot signatures, and other places. It's a quote about scientific ideas, usually structured in three parts. Here's the paraphrase: "First a new idea is rejected as heretical. Then it is (I don't remember what). Finally, it is universally accepted." Any ideas?
posted by waxpancake at 1:05 PM PST - 11 comments
Can anyone recommend a DJ in the Boston area for my september wedding? Perhaps a DJ is you. That's fine, too.
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posted by Mayor Curley at 1:00 PM PST - 12 comments
I have a circular patio table with four legs. The paving stones are uneven, so it has always been difficult to set the table in place so it doesn't wobble. I move it regularly, since the shadows from the trees change, and sometimes I want shade, other times sun. I used to mark small dots on the stones so I could set it down quickly. Then I discovered something very interesting--no matter where I put the table, if I simply rotate it around its center, I can very quickly find a steady configuration. But move it from place to place, and it takes all day.
This is like the four color map theorem. It works every time, but I haven't figured out why. It might even be tricky to put this into a mathematical format. The table doesn't need to be level, and all four legs needn't be the same height or "at" the same height. The table just can't wobble.
Go geeks.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 12:44 PM PST - 10 comments
DVD ReEditing woes: The video stream from a DVD has bad metadata, and repairing the m2v file I've ripped hasn't worked.
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posted by too many notes at 12:34 PM PST - 1 comments
I'm need some direction with this: I've been a PC guy all my life but decided to "switch" to the Mac mini(with KVM)to see if I like it better. However, I'm about to convert all of my mom's old LP's to CD's and want to use the Mini for this. I know it doesn't have an audio in but was hoping that someone could suggest a specific USB Audio Interface and audio recording software for the mac and any any other kind of tips or tricks for this project.
posted by stevyb at 12:28 PM PST - 5 comments
What should one take as gifts for friends/family members when travelling to India from the States?
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posted by darsh at 10:55 AM PST - 17 comments
I've had a bad experience with two hard drives being fried by one computer. Unfortunately...
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posted by jon_kill at 10:27 AM PST - 3 comments
The Incredibles comes out on DVD on Tuesday, and there's nothing that will stop me from rushing out to acquire this jam-packed roller-coaster of a movie. But which version?
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posted by soyjoy at 10:21 AM PST - 22 comments
I'm trying to create a panoramic landscape view from several photographs in Photoshop. How do I go about making the colors/tones of the sky & snow match from photo to photo?
posted by skwm at 10:18 AM PST - 8 comments
Does anyone know of software that will forward my cell phone's incoming Caller ID info to my Windows desktop?
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posted by idontlikewords at 10:00 AM PST - 4 comments
Is it possible to have an HTML select form element display images for each choice rather than text?
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posted by ewagoner at 9:52 AM PST - 5 comments
I'm currently finishing a MS degree at Georgia Tech. I've been accepted to the GT PhD program, and will probably be accepted at the MIT Media Lab. Should I stay or should I go?
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posted by anjiro at 9:37 AM PST - 24 comments
Long and short of it: I'm going to be moving by end of April from St. Louis to the Minneapolis area. A handful of complicating factors in the usual the more, it is, etc.
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posted by Drastic at 9:29 AM PST - 9 comments
Are there any books, journal articles, or magazine articles about the phenomenon of "quoting" and other allusory / referential techniques in jazz?
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posted by rkent at 9:26 AM PST - 1 comments
Who is the photographer/artist whose photo series revolved around a slightly creepy puppet/creature/thing in (often) compromising positions?
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posted by ScottUltra at 8:50 AM PST - 5 comments
What's the best way to teach adult ESL students (Polish engineers) how to use articles ("a" or "the" or nothing)?
posted by pracowity at 3:09 AM PST - 7 comments
Inspired by the thread about Audacity. I'm currently recording interviews on my computer through the modem, but the available software is shaky at best. Help me find a telephone with a line out jack!
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posted by NekulturnY at 2:22 AM PST - 8 comments
Back in the early/mid 80's here in S. Africa the local TV station broadcast a live action children's series about two minitaure elves(I think they were elves) who lived amongst normal size folk in the modern day. What was it called?
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posted by PenDevil at 1:48 AM PST - 4 comments
March 9
When I was younger my mom had a fairytale book she read to me all the time, and it has since been lost. What's the name/where can I find it again?
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posted by nile_red at 7:48 PM PST - 7 comments
I've been working with 16-bit grey layered tiffs lately, 50-250 MB each. When browsing a folder of 25 files, my machine chokes to the point of screen redraws becoming "wipes". What'd going on, and how do I fix it?
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posted by Jack Karaoke at 7:13 PM PST - 9 comments
Is the extra insurance offered by rental car agencies really needed, or is it just a big scam?
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posted by o0o0o at 6:20 PM PST - 16 comments
Needed: a photo or at least more information about a particular system of coded communication supposedly used in ancient china along the Great Wall. Either my google-fu is failing me or I dreamed this whole thing up.
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posted by fatllama at 6:05 PM PST - 2 comments
I live in a warm climate, and I have a job interview in a cold climate in the near future. How do I dress professionally when there are a few feet of snow on the ground?
posted by abbyladybug at 5:54 PM PST - 18 comments
One of the features of Buckminster Fuller's
Dymaxion Bathroom was a
fog gun shower. It was supposed to spray atomized water at high pressure, over 200 psi, and get you clean with less than a cup of water. Would this work? Has this ever been made?
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posted by hydrophonic at 5:53 PM PST - 6 comments
My husband and I are about to legally separate with joint custody of our 5-year-old daughter. How do we break the news to her?
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posted by Gucky at 3:30 PM PST - 30 comments
I have a pair of headphones that I like, but the cord on them is ten feet long. As it is I have to wrap them up with an elastic band. Is there a way to cut the cord, remove a bit of the wire, and put it back together?
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posted by synecdoche at 3:02 PM PST - 22 comments
Any ideas on increasing self discipline with respect to personal habits? Particularly in a College/Academic setting?
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posted by phyrewerx at 2:22 PM PST - 14 comments
Some friends are considering making the switch to an iBook but they use MSN video chat to keep in touch with several friends abroad and this is a must-have feature for them. I couldn't locate any OS X IM clients that support MSN video chat, although rumors indicate the next version of the official client will support it. Does anyone know if any clients exist now for OS X that would work for them?
posted by harmfulray at 1:46 PM PST - 10 comments
Anyone know of a good public torrent tracker I can use when making torrents? I don't feel like setting up my own and using Azareus's built in one isn't an option since my machine is off so often.
posted by daHIFI at 1:08 PM PST - 5 comments
How do I set up .htaccess files in both a directory and sub-directory so they don't conflict?
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posted by mystyk at 12:56 PM PST - 5 comments
Why are the aluminum foil sheets used at deli counters patterned (with dimples, crosshatches, diamonds, &c.)? Is patterned foil available in roll form?
posted by breezeway at 11:43 AM PST - 8 comments
Can anyone give me a website or a reference I can use to find out/get a list of US companies that are actually foreign-owned?
posted by Cool Alex at 11:31 AM PST - 11 comments
I've only owned two issues of the zine Cometbus, and I've lost one of them. Help me figure out which issue I am thinking of so I can reacquire it.
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posted by 23skidoo at 11:24 AM PST - 6 comments
I keep hearing that while you're trying to lose weight, you should be careful not to UNDEReat. True?
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posted by grumblebee at 10:57 AM PST - 17 comments
St. Paddy's Day? Or St. Patty's Day? The latter makes me grind my teeth. But I'm seeing it more often. (Google calls it even, more or less.)
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 10:07 AM PST - 13 comments
is i possible to tell in a drug test if it is from a male or female?
posted by specialk420 at 9:49 AM PST - 15 comments
As a freelance graphics designer, I have several different paper stocks that I use daily for mock-ups (mainly sized 8.5"x 11" - 13" x 19"). Are there any fairly inexpensive storage units you other artists use to keep these stocks organized?
posted by sharksandwich at 9:39 AM PST - 5 comments
There was a game screenshot of a guy about to get fragged. He was on his knees wearing a copyleft, or creative commons, or EFF t-shirt, something like that. Ring any bells?
posted by leotrotsky at 8:56 AM PST - 2 comments
My office just bought a
HP Designjet 815mfp large format scanner/printer. The only space we have for it is in my co-worker's office area and now he's sitting about 5 feet away from the device. Is there any health danger from sitting so close to this device?
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posted by Servo5678 at 8:50 AM PST - 2 comments
What are the best tricks, using an audio program like Audacity, for improving a recording of a phone interview where the other guy sounds really quiet, but your voice is loud? What compression/decibal settings are typically best, and what other effects will bring the quiet voice up -- perhaps without making the loud voice much louder?
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posted by inksyndicate at 8:38 AM PST - 9 comments
I'm the treasurer of a small non-profit organization who has been keeping track of our group's finances in a crude, checkbook-style format. I'd like to keep the financial records in a more professional way, as if we were a small business. What's the best way for me to learn how to do this? Can anyone suggest good books or software that will help me learn this?
posted by capcuervo at 8:22 AM PST - 6 comments
I am looking at wedding bands and want a titanium band. However, various jewelers are quick with the "it is very difficult to cut titanium and in the event of a bad happening you could lose your finger OMG!" But then, some unaffiliated individuals tell me that this is just their ploy to get me to buy the more expensive bling like the platinum and that titanium can rather easily be cut. Any tips? Information? Stories? Tales of the amputated finger and woe?
posted by xmutex at 8:21 AM PST - 20 comments
I picked up a whole box of unmarked motors at a garage sale for three dollars. How can I figure out how much electricity I need to use to power them?
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posted by the_W at 8:12 AM PST - 3 comments
My wife and I are opening a small, single-screen independent movie theater in April, and we need to buy a good digital projector... pronto. What should we be looking for as far as specs (Lumens, throw, inputs, etc.)?
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posted by bjork24 at 7:59 AM PST - 9 comments
My friend has a 1995 Saturn (as do I). For some reason, the plastic paneling in part of the interior, around the doors, is falling away from the frame.
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posted by amtho at 7:13 AM PST - 3 comments
How hard is it for a mostly wheelchair bound person to get around Spain by train? Our party of 4 includes one wheelchair user (who can make short walks on prosthetic limbs if necessary) and three people with no mobility issues. We're trying to determine if we can travel by train among Madrid, Seville, Toledo, and Cordoba, or if we should rent a car. First-hand accounts would be particularly appreciated, and any other tips on accessibility issues in Spain are welcome as well.
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posted by yankeefog at 7:08 AM PST - 9 comments 
