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In Secretary there is a scene where Maggie Gyllenhaal is putting on blue eyeshadow, her hair is braided, and I swear it's familiar, also later she's setting a rat trap and the 'movie deja vu' happens again. Is this scene supposed to echo another movie or am I imagining things? Also, are there any other movies that have a decent portrayal of D/s relationships?
posted by nile_red at 11:30 PM PST - 14 comments

Online dating diplomacy. If you decide after an email or two that you are not interested in the other person, either because the conversation is uninspiring or the pictures they send are unappealing, should you actually write to tell them "sorry, but I'm not interested?" Or is that worse than falling silent and letting the correspondence die? Some people persist if you don't respond, and ask "what's the deal? you didn't like my pic?" I honestly don't know what's the best thing to say, if anything. Honesty is not the same as full disclosure, and I just feel that random people really don't need to hear that I find them undesireable / uninteresting. I figure if I just stop writing, most people will simply write me off and move on. What do you think?
posted by scarabic at 11:04 PM PST - 38 comments

How dangerous is it to drive with earphones? I drive a noisy, noisy little car with a crappy stereo, and the tempation to just listen to my flash mp3 player with some Koss isolating earbuds is pretty strong, yet I don't want to endanger others or die in a fiery wreck. But at some point, with the car as noisy as it is, what's the difference?
posted by anonymous at 10:49 PM PST - 26 comments

Tonight, one of my housemates checked into a safehouse. Unbeknownst to anyone else in the house, he's been cutting himself, and he's suffering from heavy depression/suicidal thoughts, mostly due to school and being away from home.

What can I do to help out? Things to do when he gets home? What would be nice to bring him while he's getting help? For anyone who's been in this situation, what did you find especially helpful/uplifting?
posted by anonymous at 10:49 PM PST - 18 comments

Molefilter: the removal of. Looking into removing a harmless (yet unattractive) mole. Cheaply. [MI] [more inside]
posted by sarahmelah at 7:23 PM PST - 21 comments

Borders administers some type of psych test when you apply online (or in store). What is the test and (of course) what are the best responses?
posted by Jim Jones at 7:23 PM PST - 31 comments

Can someone please explain to me the argument against genetically-engineered foods? If science can increase our agricultural output, why shouldn't we take advantage of it? What are the hidden consequences of growing GE crops and raising GE animals?
posted by BuddhaInABucket at 7:22 PM PST - 39 comments

Firefox and favicon.ico: Why does the Firefox bookmark toolbar pick up the favicon.ico for some sites but not others? How can I make it pick up the favicon.ico for my site? [+] [more inside]
posted by sciurus at 6:47 PM PST - 11 comments

Globalization on Film: I’m looking for suggestions for recent films which deal with the topic of globalization in interesting ways. [MI+] [more inside]
posted by tulseluper at 6:47 PM PST - 20 comments

Uploading images to a digital camera. Can it be done?

I have an HP Photosmart 435 digital camera. I have the Unload settings such that the images are deleted from the memory card every time they are downloaded to the PC. I want to take advantage of the Target print-your-own-photos kiosk that allows you to plug in your memory card to download photos (and I don't want to burn CDs every time I want prints). Is it possible to put images back ON my memory card in the camera? I know all about using Ofoto and Shutterfly. (I suppose this is a fairly narrowly phrased question).
posted by trey at 6:42 PM PST - 6 comments

An elderly relative was just diagnosed with spinal stenosis. [+] [more inside]
posted by grateful at 6:15 PM PST - 3 comments

Anyone know the origin (if one exists) to the phrase "Well sir..." -- you know, when it's spoken quickly, with the emphasis on the WELL word. My friend and I use it all the time and are nearly certain that it hails from a TV show, movie, or some other cultural touchstone. Ideas?
posted by davidmsc at 5:06 PM PST - 19 comments

TrumpetFilter: A long shot I know, BUT.. I'm a 17 year old trumpet player of reasonably high student standard, and I have recently been asked to consider performing a concerto sometime in the summer with my local youth orchestra. Could anyone suggest any suitable repertoire? (Not Arutiunian, Mozart, Haydn or Hummel).
posted by Lotto at 4:02 PM PST - 12 comments

Another obsecure 70's TV movie question....[mi+] [more inside]
posted by keep it tight at 3:00 PM PST - 5 comments

What's up with scratch tickets? Are they just as much of a scam as the regular lottery? Are some a better gamble than others? Does anyone ever make any money off of those things?
posted by agregoli at 1:56 PM PST - 26 comments

This has puzzled me for a long time. People who've been blind since birth - how can they dream images? Do they? Without a visual history for reference, how can it happen?
posted by davebush at 1:48 PM PST - 7 comments

2 iPod users, 2 Macs- how do we share music? [MI] [more inside]
posted by mkultra at 1:44 PM PST - 13 comments

London Historical Site Filter (come in, come in) [more inside]
posted by LarryC at 1:30 PM PST - 8 comments

I dropped my PB this morning (truth be told, I slipped down a couple stairs and landed hard), this time really badly. The top aluminum panel has a corner bent (about 2 degrees from about 2 inches in) and the bottom case is so badly bent and warped that I was astounded the machine booted up. More inside... [more inside]
posted by o2b at 1:26 PM PST - 9 comments

Wanna-be librarian/archivist filter -- I'm looking for advice or personal experiences on how long library experience "lasts", if a MSI can "expire" due to immediate use, etc. (more inside) [more inside]
posted by birchfield at 1:25 PM PST - 7 comments

Broken Gmail account: I have GmailStatus installed which tells me i have 4 new messages, but whenever I try to open my inbox it tells me that "[my] session has expired. Please sign in again." Has anyone found any resources for fixing or reporting a problem with Gmail? [more inside]
posted by garethspor at 1:20 PM PST - 7 comments

Looking for recommendations on networked mp3 players for a home stereo. [+] [more inside]
posted by skwm at 12:54 PM PST - 8 comments

A friend’s car sat parked legally* on the street outside our house for approx 6 months. It was towed last week for being “parked on the grass” and for not “possessing a valid parking permit.” While there may have been other valid reasons for it to get towed, it was certainly not parked on the grass, nor did it need a permit to be parked there. The towing company denies wrongdoing (obviously) is doing everything possible to avoid responsibility. [MI] [more inside]
posted by fourstar at 12:47 PM PST - 24 comments

I love some of the commercials for PBS. There is one playing currently that is constructed around the story of Little Red Riding Hood's wolf. Philip Glass' music from The Hours is throughout, a father is reading the story to his daughter, then gets interrupted by Lara Spencer, Charlie Rose ("In my interview with the wolf, he said he does his own stunts to add more realism to the story"), Jim Lehrer, Bernadette Peters and a couple others who I don't know, who all have comments about the wolf. Is this commercial available online? Does anyone know who made this?
posted by scazza at 12:16 PM PST - 4 comments

How to sell a non-moving car? [MI]
posted by defcom1 at 11:50 AM PST - 10 comments

What's the best way to find cheap flights (Harrisburg, PA to San Jose or San Francisco, CA) for this weekend? I know about Priceline, but would prefer to at least have some say in what times my flights are. Orbitz, Expedia, etc. are all showing really expensive fares.
posted by rorycberger at 11:45 AM PST - 15 comments

What's involved in being a sperm donor? I was recently approached by a friend of a friend, and don't really know what to say besides I guess I'm flattered. Any legal/emotional/financial/logitical concerns, pitfalls, and/or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
posted by gottabefunky at 11:44 AM PST - 11 comments

Where to study or read in NYC? [+] [more inside]
posted by lorrer at 11:30 AM PST - 11 comments

Age and (physical) flexibility. [MI] [more inside]
posted by TiredStarling at 11:13 AM PST - 12 comments

I used to love to play pachinko, but it's been years and years since i've seen one. Where in canada or america can i get my fix? (Proximity to toronto preferred but not necessary.)
posted by psychoticreaction at 11:10 AM PST - 1 comment

Is posting an ad on Monster.com worthwhile? [more inside]
posted by faustessa at 11:05 AM PST - 18 comments

I'd like to automate some sort of synchronize process to run every time I start/close a separate application in Windows. It should download a data file on launch and upload after exiting, without having to think about it. Is there any easy way to do this? Preferably using SFTP or another secure method.
posted by sfluke20 at 10:38 AM PST - 13 comments

Help us Find That Flick! It's a scary movie from the 1970s that may in fact have been a TV pilot for a show called "Ghost Story." (Open the creaking door, come inside...) [more inside]
posted by GaelFC at 10:37 AM PST - 6 comments

Where can I get cheap 11"x17" poster frames? This size is really hard to find in shops, despite being a standard size for concert/theatre posters. The cheapest I've found in Toronto is CA$17 a piece, for a standard 2-inch pine bordered frame. Any reputable & cheap online stores? I'm looking to buy 10 frames.
posted by krunk at 10:05 AM PST - 12 comments

Music Practice: I recall someone describing to me a book that describes how to get into the proper mindset for practicing your instrument, and discusses the psychology of performing, stage fright, and how to achieve the right mindset before a performance. The person who described it said it had helped them greatly in practice and performance. This may not be enough to nail down the specific book, but does anyone have a book or method that has helped them with these things? [more inside]
posted by agropyron at 9:40 AM PST - 8 comments

I have a DVD that I want to edit using a tool like Windows Movie Maker or Adobe Premiere. How do I somehow get an editable file from the files on the DVD (vob, ifo, etc.)? I'm looking to retain as much quality as possible, so I assume this means I need an MPEG2 file? I've looked all over dvdrhelp and doom9, and if this is covered, it's covered using words I don't understand. In order of priority: Quality of final product/ease of use/price. Thanks! [more inside]
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 9:35 AM PST - 7 comments

OenoFilter: When/where/how did the practice of wine tasting begin? More specific question inside. [more inside]
posted by Miko at 9:09 AM PST - 21 comments

VideoFilter: When I take stills from a DV capture and use them in my Premiere Footage as a slide, sometimes they image will shake, as if the image is quickly switching back and forth between frames. What causes this and is there any way to cure it?
posted by bryanzera at 8:46 AM PST - 5 comments

VacationFilter: After 15 years of work, I'm ready for a real vacation. Do any of the DC-Metro Area Folks have a good travel agent they can recommend for planning a Cruise?
posted by ad hoc at 8:17 AM PST - 4 comments

For the last few days I think I've been suffering from a very mild stomach flu. Nothing virulent, just enough to make me at times mildly uncomfortable. A friend of mine wants me to meet him for a drink tonight. I've heard that whisky can kill microbes in the stomach. Is this true? If so, would a couple of fingers of whisky be a good idea tonight? [more inside]
posted by sic at 7:48 AM PST - 13 comments

RoofingFilter: One reason we got our new house cheap is that the roof needs to be replaced (and the ventilation improved); unfortunately our inspector, who used to be a roofer and had good suggestions, didn't have any names to recommend and could only suggest we get as many bids as possible. Since I had good luck with my query about movers (and thanks, NorthCoastCafe, for recommending City Moves, who were great!), I'm rolling the dice again: anyone know a good roofer in Pittsfield (or the northern Berkshires)?
posted by languagehat at 7:34 AM PST - 9 comments

I went to see a foreign film yesterday and was dismayed that the subtitles were in white. Isn't it a proven fact that subtitles show up better when in yellow? Also, why are subtitles in a sans serif font? I read something sometime ago that printed text should be in a serif font because it's easier on the eyes. Something about the serif thingies allowing your eyes to flow from letter to letter easier than a sans serif font.
posted by NoMich at 7:16 AM PST - 27 comments

I'm 21. Should I start drinking? [MI] [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 4:14 AM PST - 80 comments

Sometimes I am in a rush and run into a convenience store to buy lunch. Problem is, I want that lunch to be reasonably healthy (lowish fat, minimal chemicals), without resorting to buying the 'fake versions' of junk foods (like baked potato chips, low-carb candy bars etc). Those foods usually have too many ingredients with 7 syllables each for my comfort. (There's nothing healthy about 'food' created in a chemistry lab.) So basically I always end up staring blankly at the shelves, and then buy an energy bar.

So - what would you suggest for a healthy(ish) lunch from a convenience store?
posted by Kololo at 2:59 AM PST - 23 comments

I thought of asking this question in response to this comment, but thought it was better off here:
Why are legal drug prices so expensive. As a biochemistry major, I see first-hand how expensive very simple reagents and machines are to create simple research. It seems somewhat reasonable that in my naive on little world, drug prices are somewhat justified by the cost of r&d. Are there any reports out there of where drug companies spend their money. i.e., can I see how much are sent on salaries, equipment, court fees, etc to get more of an understanding of drug company costs and profits, especially since I'll probably being getting a job at one in a few months. Also, info on why drugs (beyond their being greedy) are so expensive in The States (or so I hear) vs. other parts of the world would be useful, too.
posted by jmd82 at 10:13 PM PST - 56 comments

its my understanding that stuff generally feels smells tastes or looks good because it benefits our survival. Fats and sugars have energy. Sex continues the species. Good interior design makes you feel safe - etc etc.

So why do flowers 'smell good'?
posted by Tryptophan-5ht at 9:57 PM PST - 21 comments

Anyone know anything about sebaceous cysts? [more inside]
posted by GriffX at 9:15 PM PST - 9 comments

All purpose text editor for the mac? [more inside]
posted by Dennis Murphy at 8:48 PM PST - 21 comments

Are AMD CPUs prone to overheating? [more inside]
posted by knave at 8:45 PM PST - 27 comments

Anyone else out there a foster parent? We are first time foster parents and are appalled by the system. A little girl has lived with us for almost a year. I can't find any internet support. Any suggestions?
posted by davenportmom at 7:56 PM PST - 12 comments

Name. This. Tune. Please. Short clip (218k); More (531k). I heard it many years ago on NPR, as background to a Joe Frank monologue. Fortunately, I taped it. I've tried every avenue I could think of to identify it, with no success. Can you? (Sorry if this is too specific—"could you get more specific?"—but I need want to know.)
posted by bricoleur at 7:50 PM PST - 15 comments

ElectronicaFilter: Inspired by a recent thread, I decided I'd ask to find the opposite: new electronica with harsh fast beats and lots of noise (more inside): [more inside]
posted by pandaharma at 6:18 PM PST - 23 comments

On tonight's Simpsons, what was the song that Homer played on the trombone?
posted by exhilaration at 5:25 PM PST - 12 comments

A friend of mine is looking for a Construction Project Manager job here in Miami, and together we've googled to find what we think are decent job sites (also, we've been to the obvious, monster, careerbuilder, etc.). He's submitted his resume repeatedly but is getting no results and is now considering using a resume delivery service like resumexposure.com. Has anyone had any experience with that specific company or other similar services that they can recommend? Also, aside from networking in person (which is what he says works best in his field) and applying for every job that he can get his hands on, are there any other basic steps he should take?
posted by sa3z at 4:44 PM PST - 3 comments

Digital fullfilment/Photography Question:

My sister's wedding had a large number of photographs taken by their friend who's a professional photographer, on his high end nikon Digital. He gave them the photos as a wedding gift, and they want people to be able to order prints on demand online.

however, they wanted to see if it were possible to tack on a small fee per photo and have the profit go to their friend.

1. What are some good print on demand sites (ofoto, etc?)
2. Do any of them allow this kind of thing?

Thanks in advance.
posted by eljuanbobo at 3:54 PM PST - 14 comments

PocketPCfilter: My mother and I have the same model Asus 716 Pocket PCs. I tried to beam a file over to hers from mine by IR. Hers asked if I wanted to receive the file, but not where I wanted to put it. It didn't land in My Documents and Find File can't find it. It may still be taking up space and it's not small. Anyone know where it went?
posted by krisjohn at 2:34 PM PST - 3 comments

Is there a way to change device icons in WinXP? [click to expand] [more inside]
posted by muckster at 12:31 PM PST - 11 comments

My brother (in-law) is having surgery tomorrow on his hands to help with his Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. He's a roofer, a general contractor and also a rock-climber, so you can imagine how not having the use of his hands for up to six weeks is going to drive him crazy. They live nowhere near me, but I'd like to present him with a list of things that he could do while bed-ridden and beyond. Points for originality, and thanks.
posted by grimley at 11:48 AM PST - 7 comments

So, I just got scammed for a couple hundred bucks. It's not going to break the bank, but does anyone have any advice for how to get over the emotional crap that comes along with getting bamboozled? (more inside)
posted by arielmeadow at 11:23 AM PST - 27 comments

Through rather fortuitous circumstances, it seems I have about a year and a half to do nothing but travel. How can I make money while doing this? [the inside is filled with more] [more inside]
posted by borkingchikapa at 11:03 AM PST - 17 comments

Is there a word for 'dilettante' that doesn't have the same negative connotation? I'm looking for a way to express employment in a number of disparate fields in an artist's bio. Ideally a noun (the sentence reads: "So-and-so is a self-employed ______"), but other/better constructions are welcome too.
posted by xo at 10:49 AM PST - 32 comments

MichaelJacksonFilter: how would one go about following the court case when located in Europe without access to American TV-networks?
posted by noius at 9:43 AM PST - 6 comments

Inspired by this thread on programming languages, I have a question on learning programming if you have no programming experience. (more) [more inside]
posted by TeamBilly at 8:38 AM PST - 31 comments

How to go from slug to stud? [more inside]
posted by drezdn at 8:16 AM PST - 31 comments

LegalMusicDownloadFilter: Why can't I download the albums I want from iTunes just because I'm in America? [MI] [more inside]
posted by Lokheed at 5:07 AM PST - 15 comments

ElectronicaFilter. I really like Apparat, Mouse on Mars and Telefon Tel Aviv: warm, crunchy, melodic, intricately textured electronica that never, or rarely, assaults the ear with walls of noise. What else will I like?
posted by gentle at 11:39 PM PST - 60 comments

What's the original source of the phrase "we lose more [noun] that way"? Googling has failed me, since I'm not sure which of the many nouns I've heard inserted in there is the correct one.
posted by Johnny Assay at 8:58 PM PST - 6 comments

ProcrastinationFilter: Help me hack myself out of wasting time on the Internet. I want to only allow myself 2 hours of bloglines a day - is there a technological solution (that will work on my PowerBook)? [MI] [more inside]
posted by cogat at 5:50 PM PST - 23 comments

I need some good, solid information about child vaccines. Everything I read either smacks of propaganda (the anti-vaccine side) or is cheerfully oversimplified (the pro-vaccine side). Is there a moderate, objective book or website that addresses the claims of both sides? [more inside]
posted by recurve at 5:12 PM PST - 24 comments

TurntableFilter: In the never-ending battle against having too much stuff, I am looking to sell one of the three vintage turntables I currently own. (The jukebox, the 60s console and the 50s mono player all are staying.) Would appreciate any advice to help me choose which two to keep! [+] [more inside]
posted by omnidrew at 3:03 PM PST - 3 comments

Language/idioms/etc: I'm wondering about the source of the expression "give it the old college try". Google offers tons of examples, but nothing concrete.
posted by cmyr at 12:38 PM PST - 8 comments

Apologies for CarFilter, however: some weeks ago my car stereo began behaving badly before finally dying. [mi] [more inside]
posted by mcsweetie at 12:23 PM PST - 6 comments

Which is best: Gamefly or Gplay? Or a different service?
posted by monju_bosatsu at 11:36 AM PST - 4 comments

I need help with attitude adjustment. I have trouble making compromises, it is usually all or nothing for me, especially when it is something important. As a result I often hurt the ones I love the most because of this flaw in me. I have tried to find ways to focus on what is more important, the love of the other person over having things my way. I know I cherish the love more, yet I can not seem to make compromises. How do I change this?
posted by anonymous at 10:55 AM PST - 21 comments

Bisexualfilter: I am a bisexual, Asian girl who is not quite out of the closet yet. Having a boyfriend kind of pulls me off any possible gaydar at the moment. However, I would like to know what physical "identifiers" there are to know whether someone's not-quite-straight, or whether I can do anything to let people clue in a bit without being too obvious. (So rainbow anything isn't really what I'm looking for, nor those badges that say attempt to be clever but come out trashy.) Thank you very much!
posted by anonymous at 10:01 AM PST - 38 comments

Any good alternatives to TypePad? It looks good, but I'm wondering if there are any other options for cheap blog hosting.
posted by punishinglemur at 9:58 AM PST - 10 comments

I have a Pioneer DVD-ROM drive and it was quite good at playing DVDs. I didn't use it for playing movies for a long while and eventually installed a DVD-burner (Pioneer too, actually). Now I can't play movies on my original DVD-ROM drive. It just spits them back out with an unceremonious "No Disc Detected". Data discs, even burned DVD-Rs work fine, as I use the drive for my main drive. Playing them on the burner works fine. Is this copy protection at work or just a strange coincidence? [MI] [more inside]
posted by ontic at 9:58 AM PST - 11 comments

Having recently installed MoveableType (after a LiveJournal migration from hell), I'm looking to personalize my blog. I can deal with web design for the templates, but I'm curious as to how people like this guy get listening and reading lists on their index. Slaving over obscure plug-in sites isn't helping. Any suggestions?
posted by themadjuggler at 9:52 AM PST - 9 comments

SewerGasFilter. Help![+] [more inside]
posted by nj_subgenius at 7:13 AM PST - 9 comments

my new-ish gas-fired water heater has started to cut out after maybe 10 minutes use. if i close and re-open the tap it fires up again. it's pretty basic - a box on a wall with electronic ignition that runs off bottled gas (propane or butane, i suppose). can anyone explain why this happens (the 15kg gas cylinder is no longer new, but certainly not near empty)? thanks.
posted by andrew cooke at 5:38 AM PST - 15 comments

Sometimes after a night of drinking, I will wake up after sleeping only about six hours, sometimes less, and no matter what I do I can't get back to sleep. What's going on? [+] [more inside]
posted by Who_Am_I at 4:25 AM PST - 21 comments

I want to learn to code. I used to be a good coder - in 6502 assembler and VAX Fortran in 1988. I know nothing of the architecture of modern computers (OOP? kernal? shell? how one set of code on work on Linux and Windows). I guess I should learn C++ - what's a good resource (book I guess) for learning, writing apps compiling etc on my Win XP machine, and finally getting jobs?
posted by Pericles at 3:15 AM PST - 20 comments

Can you help me track down a volume of Nabokov's poetry? I know such volumes exist, you just can't buy them on any store I've looked at online. Thanks!
posted by adrober at 12:00 AM PST - 5 comments

I'm compiling a list of misunderstood song lyrics as a gift for a friend who has an obsession with, well, misunderstood song lyrics. [...] [more inside]
posted by mudpuppie at 7:57 PM PST - 64 comments

Along with some foodie friends, we're having a "winter of offal." The idea is to expand our culinary horizons, and show respect for our food animals, by getting together every few weeks and learning to cook *excellent* food from organically raised trotters, entrails, and other bits commonly thought of as nasty. This week, I'm cooking beef tongue - so suggestions for that are particularly welcome. But any and all gourmet offal (not awful) recipes would be great.
posted by stonerose at 6:14 PM PST - 35 comments

Those of you with panic disorders, how do you handle your panic attacks? Can you prevent them? What mental or physical practices have you developed to cope with them? [more inside]
posted by squirrel at 6:13 PM PST - 24 comments

U2 tickets are going on sale this Sunday morning, at least for the San Jose show in April. Not having any inside contacts, what's the best way to get a pair of tickets (Ticketmaster in-store or on the website)? [more inside]
posted by billsaysthis at 5:52 PM PST - 17 comments

My wife and I argue all the time about financial matters, but the problem certainly isn't one that I have heard from anyone else. The thing is, we have plenty of money -- more than enough to be comfortable. Hopefully someone here has an idea to help me (us). [MI] [more inside]
posted by bagels at 5:24 PM PST - 52 comments

My girlfriend lives in an old house in an even older city (Poughkeepsie, New York). The building has obviously been subletted and then rebuilt. We think it was a one family, then a two-family, and now it's a one-family again. The layout is so weird with five bedrooms (one being in the attic), two kitchens and no living or dining rooms that we're really curious to find out what looked like originally. How can we go about digging up these kinds of records? Is there any way to find old floor plans or building codes from public records online or off? Further, can we find out about past owners and tenants?
posted by tomorama at 5:24 PM PST - 15 comments

How do I compile C code into code to be run on a Motorola 68K ECB unit using its native TUTOR program? [MI] [more inside]
posted by onalark at 5:00 PM PST - 11 comments

RetreatingIntoAcademia filter: I've decided to go back to school to study and teach Media Studies. Except I have no idea how to find the perfect school/program for me. Suggestions? [mi] [more inside]
posted by Gucky at 1:51 PM PST - 21 comments

Kleenex = any facial tissue. Xerox = any copy machine. "There are thousands of Milky Ways out there."

What's the word for using the name of a specific thing to refer to all things in its class? It's metonymy, right, but is it synecdoche? Is it antonomasia? Help!
posted by goatdog at 1:46 PM PST - 36 comments

what does one do, if ones property has been resurveyed, actually all surrounding properties have been resurveyed, and he discovers that his neighbors house is within his newly corrected property lines? (original survey was done about 60-70 years ago - hence the errors)
posted by specialk420 at 12:42 PM PST - 31 comments

Windows Networking. Computer A can see B and C; computers B and C can both see A. How do I make B see C? [+] [more inside]
posted by Asef Jil at 12:17 PM PST - 13 comments

Email forwarding problem within the domain: Trying to fix my boss's email account. He checks his email using Netscape 7.2 on a Win98 PC. (We can't convince him to upgrade). He can send mail and reply to mail fine. He can forward mail fine, except when it is to one of use within the same domain name. It appears to send successfully but never shows up. I've tried looking through the email headers but nothing sticks out and I don't relaly know what to look for. Was wondering if this situation rings a bell for anyone?
posted by jacobsee at 11:08 AM PST - 4 comments

FireFoxExtension/Theme Filter
I have been using FireFox for a while now and prefer it to other browser offerings but am having a recurring issue that I can't seem to find any help on. Everytime I try to download and install a new theme or extension, it downloads, FireFox asks me if I want to install it, it appears to install it but the extension or theme never shows up in the relevant window. Did I change some setting to break the extensions? (MI) [more inside]
posted by fenriq at 11:07 AM PST - 7 comments

Why is wine snobbery fanaticism predominately limited to reds?
posted by xmutex at 10:49 AM PST - 43 comments

My Mom is selling her house, moving to a new place and given me an ultimatum. She says I have one year to get my crap from her or it is no longer mine. As a result, I need to ship a large, antique, wooden cabinet 2,000+ miles. It probably weighs about 100 lbs. How can this be accomplished for a reasonable cost? What is a reasonable cost for this type of job? How do you protect the piece of furniture during shipping? Are there any companies you have worked with and recommend?
posted by onhazier at 10:40 AM PST - 6 comments

This past year I’ve moved to an area where they use rock salt on the sidewalks and roads during the winter and it is tearing apart my dog’s paws. Does anyone have experience with this? Do the salves work? How about the booties? Do I have a chance in hell of getting booties on an eight-year-old lab?
posted by a22lamia at 10:10 AM PST - 13 comments

I'm a landlord and yesterday the violent crimes unit came by with a felony arrest warrant for one of my tenants, who wasn't home. They left me their card and asked me to call them when she was at home so they could come get her. My trouble is, I left a note on her door asking her to call the cops, which apparently she got, and apparently she did, though I haven't seen her at home any time recently. Have I just obstructed justice by trying to be fair to my (in my estimation) good tenant?
posted by anonymous at 10:10 AM PST - 22 comments

If one wanted to cross the Atlantic (west to east) on the cheap, and the time wasn't really a factor, how would one go about doing that? Are there still tramp steamers?
posted by Capn at 10:07 AM PST - 9 comments

Beer fans: what are you favorite brews? Are there any particular styles you appreciate more than others? If so, what do you think are the exemplary crafts of that style? Do you prefer bottle, bottle poured, or tap? What, to you, makes a good beer?
posted by baphomet at 9:38 AM PST - 57 comments

SUVFilter: My wife and I want a vehicle that will handle the rugged (and worsening, now they are no longer maintained) logging roads in this province, as we head out for dayhikes and backpacking trips. We're looking at the Ford Escape/Mazda Tribute, Nissan Pathfinder, and Toyota 4Runner. Zoom, zoom inside... [more inside]
posted by five fresh fish at 9:35 AM PST - 26 comments

Sometimes I get a small little bump in my mouth that feels like a wart or something. I can pop it easily with my finger just by pushing on it and fluid comes out, and it goes away. What are these things technically? Is swallowing the popped juice dangerous?
posted by anonymous at 9:33 AM PST - 13 comments

I've wanted a copy of my personal FBI file under the FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) for a while now, but never requested it. I have reason to believe that it may be slightly more extensive than the average dossier. My question is this, then:

Given the current "tone" in the US right now, is it unwise or imprudent to make the request now? Is it going to flag me for more intense scrutiny? (which is fine, I suppose, as I'm a law-abiding citizen) Has anyone had any experience with this? (I know how to apply, I'm asking whether I should.)
posted by anonymous at 9:12 AM PST - 10 comments

How do type an upside down question mark in Outlook Express? (for Spanish class)
posted by alball at 8:30 AM PST - 15 comments

Life insurance--where/what kind to get? [more inside]
posted by MrMoonPie at 8:03 AM PST - 7 comments

My girlfriend and I are opening a savings account where we can put away some money to give to a charity for the homeless. We live in Boston--what organizations should we be looking at around here?
posted by josh at 7:46 AM PST - 10 comments

In my ongoing struggle against cable clutter, I've been on the lookout for short firewire cables. At both work and home I have stacks of firewire drives, and the one to three foot cables that they come with are far longer than is necessary. Since these drives are almost always daisy chained and stacked on top of each other, I think there's a real market for four or six inch firewire cable, but it's nowhere to be found. Am I missing an obvious source? Are there firewire cable kits similar to cat-5 kits?
posted by djacobs at 7:36 AM PST - 2 comments

The sound on my Palm Tungsten E switches randomly on and off. I'll set an alarm, test and hear it, but by the time it goes off, my Palm has decided to go silent. Under preferences / sounds and alerts everything is set to high. My battery level is fine. Even though I can't hear anything through the palm's speaker, if I plug in headphones, there's sound. Then, a few hours later, the sound comes back. I'm not sure, but I think it happens mostly at night, so I'm wondering if there's some hidden "switch sound off after 8pm" setting somewhere.
posted by signal at 7:34 AM PST - 2 comments

I recently returned to Macintosh after a long stint with Windows. I'd like to upgrade the memory and video card in my 1.8ghz g5. It used to be, long ago, that Macs and PCs did not share the same hardware. Is this still the case? What do I need to know about shopping for RAM and video cards? Can I go out and buy any 400mhz PC3200 RAM for my g5, or does it have to be a special kind? Will the g5 take any video card, or does it have to be Mac-specific? What other pitfalls will I encounter? [more inside]
posted by jdroth at 7:27 AM PST - 14 comments

XPATH hell-I'm trying to XPATH out the (xml) contents of the processVXMLReturn tag in this document. The file contains the exact XML response from a web service; I have no control over the output. I'm just interested in the nested xml payload. Hope my terminology is correct.[M to the Izzay]

Positive Oracle karma offered in exchange! [more inside]
posted by neilkod at 7:16 AM PST - 14 comments

Allergic to another person physically/sexually? Does this really exist? I've heard comments about it here, but do any of you have any experiences/more information on this? Thanks!
posted by eas98 at 6:55 AM PST - 12 comments

Best semi political protest songs? I'd like for them to be fairly recent if possible. Somehow relating to freedom of speech, etc.
posted by damnitkage at 5:45 AM PST - 23 comments

Do I need an accountant? [MI] [more inside]
posted by monkey closet at 2:53 AM PST - 9 comments

English language question: what is the difference between intern/internship and trainee/traineeship? [+] [more inside]
posted by elgilito at 2:39 AM PST - 19 comments

At least since I was a kid, there's been the joke/expression "underwater basketweaving." Namely as a joke college major: "What's your major?" "Underwater basketweaving." What is the origin of this expression? Anyone know?
posted by zardoz at 12:51 AM PST - 26 comments

After seeing this impressive sketchbook I'm wondering what others are out there. What extraordinary scanned sketchbooks have people found out there?
posted by gwint at 9:53 PM PST - 14 comments

I'm missing some songs from my MP3 collection that I'd really like to have, but don't seem to be readily available. Where do I find these rarities? Some of the songs were from CD's that the local radio station put out. Others were from artists who were smaller and the CD's aren't available easily. iTunes, Buy.com, Napster don't seem to have these type of things, and they don't seem to be on Kazaa or Gnutella. Am I doomed to never find them? Is there someplace that sells these CD's or MP3s?
posted by stovenator at 9:23 PM PST - 10 comments

QUOTEFILTER: Newly(-ish) married, ISO some good quotes to emblazon upon my groomsmen's thank-you gifts (flasks) [more inside]
posted by prettyboyfloyd at 8:23 PM PST - 6 comments

TV program listings: how are they gathered, like in TV guide, or Yahoo TV, or TiVo? Is there one company who compiles the database (who?) and provides any taker with them for a fee, or is the data so ubiquitous that anyone can compile it now? If there is more than one source, is there any consensus on the better?
posted by kk at 7:55 PM PST - 6 comments

Help me find my dream DVD player [MI] [more inside]
posted by quibx at 7:20 PM PST - 14 comments

I need some suggestions for some luggage. I am starting a new job in the tech field (laptop capability needed for sure) where I will be traveling 60 - 70% of the year. My visits will typically only last a week, but I tend to over pack. Any ideas on the perfect luggage for an IT worker? [more inside]
posted by bobadoci at 6:36 PM PST - 26 comments

Native American scholars : I'd like some recommendations for good introductory books on Native Americans and their cultures. More inside... [more inside]
posted by Slothrop at 5:01 PM PST - 12 comments

FinancialFilter. I'm looking to consolidate credit card debt and am not sure what my options are. Advice?

I owe about $13,000 on four credit cards (14.9% - 19.9% APR), and about $35,000 on a consolidated student loan (4.5% APR). I've had a checking account with my current bank for over four years, but no savings account. I'm employed full-time, would be willing to close all but one of my credit card accounts when paid off, and although I don't know what my credit rating is, I know it's got to be pretty good. Oh, and I'm female, over thirty, if that matters.

What kind of APR could I expect from a signature loan? Is a signature loan a good idea? Should I leave my student loan as is?
posted by anonymous at 4:58 PM PST - 11 comments

ResumeGrammarFilter: When describing my current job in my resume, I am torn between using the past tense (which sounds better in sentences that start with a verb, e.g. "Performed extensive data analysis," as well as matches the rest of my resume) and the present (since the job is still going on, but sentences like "Perform extensive data analysis" or "Performs extensive data analysis" sound wrong). Anybody know what's correct here? [anonymous because I don't want my coworkers to know I'm working on my resume]
posted by anonymous at 4:58 PM PST - 12 comments

OwnershipSocietyFilter: Is this $50 trinket really the only way to get data from my bank account (Quicken Interchange Format) into Quickbooks? Intuit would like me to make a not-free call to ask the same question...
posted by subpixel at 4:50 PM PST - 5 comments

I'm trying to setup Firefox to stream MP3 files from my webserver rather than download them first. I know about creating an .m3u file with a link to the mp3 to do this but does anyone know an easier way, I'm not going to create .m3u files for 90,000 songs.
posted by Cosine at 4:26 PM PST - 7 comments

BeardFilter: Good ways to make facial hair softer and fuzzier? Do general hair conditioners work, or are there specific things for facial hair?
posted by namespan at 3:51 PM PST - 5 comments

If I'm planning on taking only simple black and white, or perhaps sepia, pictures, does the number of megapixels in a camera matter all that much? I'm not planning on being the next Ansel Adams, btw.
posted by icontemplate at 3:29 PM PST - 19 comments

Melancholy fiction for a dark season: here in the Northeast U.S. we're in the midst of a particularly miserable January. I'm looking for some contemporary fiction that echoes the bleakness of the weather. What extraordinary books have you curled up with recently that are elegiac, darkly funny or otherwise wintry in tone?
posted by killdevil at 2:40 PM PST - 50 comments

Has anyone tried eating a living foods diet? How long did you do it and . . .did you see a benefit from the effort?

I've enjoyed going demi-vegetarian the last 7 months. But when I looked through some raw foods cookbooks the menu and the plan didn't seem realistic.
posted by iwearredsocks at 2:15 PM PST - 20 comments

DigitalSanbornFilter - I need to get my hands on some NYC digital sanborn maps [m to the i] [more inside]
posted by plemeljr at 1:58 PM PST - 5 comments

Is it possible to convert or otherwise use Photshop plugins from Windows to Mac? I have lots of legacy plugins and effects from the old Windows PC here at work. We switched to Mac but many of the plugins are not available for Mac.
posted by ooklah at 1:54 PM PST - 7 comments

After installing an .htaccess file to prevent direct image-linking, one of my readers pointed out that the alternate replacement image I specified was showing up in my Bloglines feed. Are there other popular web-based aggregators I should grant permission to in my .htaccess file? And does an .htaccess file prevent images from showing up in software-based RSS readers, or just web-based?
posted by Robot Johnny at 1:46 PM PST - 3 comments

Noxious cooking, chemical, and exhaust fumes at work [m.i.]: [more inside]
posted by naxosaxur at 1:32 PM PST - 13 comments

I own a digital point-and-shoot camera, and was looking to upgrade to a "nicer" camera for some more ambitious photography. But I was wondering if it makes sense to spend a lot on a digital camera, as it seemingly will be a bit archaic, if not outright obsolete, in a few years. E.g., old Leicas or even manual Nikons still fetch fair amounts on Ebay, while digital cameras a few years old sell for a fraction of their original value. I know digital cameras are supposed to making analog obsolete, but I'm just wondering about the obsolescence factor of digital. In other words, should I buy the new digital Leica or a vintage analog Leica? Any thoughts?
posted by jgballard at 12:52 PM PST - 31 comments

I am looking for a good IM client for my Treo 600. [MI]
posted by bDiddy at 12:13 PM PST - 9 comments

I'm a full-time college sophomore. I'm working full time, 35 hours a week, to try and make ends meet but I'm having a hard time. I know there was another thread on loans earlier, but my situation is different.

The disbursement I get from the federal student loan programs is not enough to cover my tuition itself, and the extra cost of room, board, books and other necessities is eating in and I'm beginning to run up serious credit card debt. My parents make enough money to keep me from getting grants or financial need scholarships, but they will not help me with school, nor will they co-sign a 3rd party loan. I live in a very cheap apartment and take the bus to school, and I've cut food and entertainment expenses to the minimums. I talked to the financial aid office and they said that there was nothing they could do except offer me a position on campus (for less hours and the same money as my current job) or give me a list of 3rd party loan providers. I called the providers, but they all rejected me because I'm too young (21), single and don't have a cosigner.

What do I do? I feel like I'm being punished for trying to go to school.
posted by anonymous at 12:10 PM PST - 59 comments

A couple of people I work with and myself were having a debate on how big the Star Wars franchise is financially? With Lucasfilms being private they never release revenue. Does anyone know how many dollars of Star Wars videogames and toys are sold each year?
posted by rje7 at 11:36 AM PST - 7 comments

StartupFilter: What questions would you ask a startup you were thinking of joining? What questions would you ask yourself?

More about the startup: its a software company that has VC funding. They are just starting to create the product. There's less than ten people involved.

More about me: a corporate monkey who's looking for a change in life if possible but can stay put if that's best. I have a good job salary-wise right now, but I do not feel like I am moving anywhere with it. I have worked long hours in the past and am interested in the product being created. I felt the need to post anonymously because I have posted about my job here before.
posted by anonymous at 11:25 AM PST - 12 comments

iPhoto 5: I love the new iPhoto and I'm really impressed with the new photobook formats. I want to order one, but after using the auto-format, half the images did a nice full page bleed while others are tiny and centered on the page. I can't seem to figure out how to stretch the smaller photos into a full page bleed. The photos are all the same large size and bit depth. Anyone figure this out yet?
posted by mathowie at 10:36 AM PST - 8 comments

I snooped in my husband's e-mail account. I know that was wrong to do, so you don't have to point that out. What I found was a bit surprising. A co-worker of his sent him pictures of herself. All were dirty, and included "showing pink," sex with her boyfriend, and giving a bj to her boyfriend. I don't have a problem with him looking at porn; I regularly look at porn myself. But this seems odd to me since he didn't tell me or show me the pictures (for reference, some are from a few days ago, and some are from a few weeks ago). He had a different girl show dirty pictures of herself before, but he told me about that. I don't think he's cheating on me with this current girl because he is kept pretty busy, and I haven't noticed anything weird between them. So my question is: is this bad? should I "confront" him?
posted by anonymous at 10:26 AM PST - 56 comments

For the past few weeks I've had nightmares that involve demons (not the little guys that have red pitchforks and make you do the wrong thing...but very eerie spooky ones). This is freaking me the hell out because I can't sleep and when I do sleep I have nightmares!

So before I go to a counselor to tell me that I'm a looney toon, is there any natural things I can do to have "pleasant dreams?"
posted by Hands of Manos at 9:29 AM PST - 47 comments

I always thought "Turing-complete programming language" meant you could write a compiler/interpreter/whatever for that language IN that language, ie. XML is not, XSLT is, C++ is for sure, I guess JavaScript could in a way...
Today I tried to check on that, and apparently it's much more abstract... or something... well I don't know for sure.
Was I wrong ? How is a Turing-complete/equivalent language defined ?
posted by XiBe at 8:05 AM PST - 27 comments

What's the best way for an almost-college graduate to find a job teaching Latin and/or Greek? I'll have a BA in Classics from a good school, but limited teaching experience. I'm not particularly looking to get certified because I don't want to do this for more than a few years.
posted by rustcellar at 7:59 AM PST - 7 comments

I saw the post on Willaim Christopher Baer in the blue yesterday and it got me thinking about how much I like slipstreamy mystery writers. There is Jack O'Connell, who has produced some of the best hallucinogenic mystery writing i've ever read. And Carol O'Connell, (no relation, I think) who has a much greater mainstream acceptance, has a touch of the strange in her writing. But, alas, I've read most all of their stuff. Any suggestions?
posted by rtimmel at 7:55 AM PST - 5 comments

Is there some sort of civic reasoning as to why sanitation workers generally make more than police officers? [more inside]
posted by Mean Mr. Bucket at 7:21 AM PST - 26 comments

A friend and I have free tickets to Glasgow from around March 18-27. We may have a free place to stay in Edinburgh. Which city is more fun? Any insider tips for travelers or fun places to go that we won’t find in guide books? (more inside) [more inside]
posted by amarynth at 7:18 AM PST - 21 comments

Something has gone horribly wrong with the spacebar on my laptop. You have to hit it in the middle to get it to work. If you tap it towards one side, nothing happens.

I admit, I removed it to clean it. Maybe this damaged it. But all the other keys on my laptop can be safely removed and replaced without damage. It's a Toshiba Portege. I'm weirded out.
posted by Polonius at 7:09 AM PST - 5 comments

NewsFilter: Looking for a monthly news source. More inside. [more inside]
posted by eatcherry at 7:01 AM PST - 9 comments

UK Credit Law query : If a company lists a default on a payment is there any recourse to have the default amended? (M:I) [more inside]
posted by longbaugh at 6:45 AM PST - 5 comments

PC Sound Filter: Can anyone explain why the sound on my pc becomes distorted / scratchy when the DVD Drive or the CD Drive is in use? Its starting to drive me nuts. (specs inside) Thanks. [more inside]
posted by kev23f at 6:33 AM PST - 6 comments

My car CD player is driving me out of my mind! It skips like mad, but only when it is very very cold out. Today it is six degrees out and I couldn't get a single track to play straight through. It doesn't matter what the CD is, it doesn't seem to matter if the car is cold or warmed up, and the road condition doesn't seem to have an impact, as it does it while I'm at red lights, too. Is there a logical reason why this happens when it is at least ten degrees below freezing? More important, is there anything I can do about it? [more inside]
posted by Kellydamnit at 6:16 AM PST - 11 comments

How do I encode hidden tracks on my CDs that appear before track 1. In my CD player I just hit backawards search to listen to them. Is there an easier way than recording a .wav and encoding that? Why aren't iTunes and Winamp equipped to find these?
posted by nthdegx at 1:43 AM PST - 11 comments

Windows Explorer has an option to display all the image files in a folder in "filmstrip" mode, which looks like this. I want to create a similar method of display on a web page. I figure I'll have to (unfortunately) use frames to create the bottom gallery of thumbnails and have it scroll like that but I would rather not have to create a separate page for each full-size picture. I would rather the page displaying the picture be dynamic and just change the picture rather than refer the browser to a different file. I figure this could be done with some scripting language (PHP?) but I don't know much about that sort of thing. Can anyone help me out? [+] [more inside]
posted by DyRE at 10:01 PM PST - 15 comments

I want to put up letters from World War II in blog form. Is there software, or tweaked software, to post weblog entries with dates in the 1940s?
posted by inksyndicate at 9:23 PM PST - 7 comments

[evil midi filter] Getting a midi keyboard to work in Fruityloops [MI] [more inside]
posted by EvilKenji at 9:16 PM PST - 5 comments

ElectrocutionFilter: Well, my overhead kitchen fluorescent fixture has gone out on me. I flipped the switch, there was a glorious spark, and now nothing. I replaced both bulbs and still no response. The circuit breaker did not blow, so it seems okay. My limited electrical knowledge imposes that it might be the light's ballast—predictably, this is the most expensive part of the fixture.

So I ask, is there anything I can do to troubleshoot and perhaps fix this bloody thing? I'm good with electrical devices, but just really don't know where to start with lighting. Difficulty: I'm a poor SOB at the moment, so that leaves out the electrician. Anyone?
posted by symphonik at 8:59 PM PST - 16 comments

I'm a straight male in a committed relationship that is washing up against the rocks of parenthood; ie she wants children and I'm not so sure. I am a depressive only child who feels that I *could* be good with kids, but maybe not so much when it's a constant never-turn-off reality. Please bless me with your wisdom.
posted by mookieproof at 8:40 PM PST - 29 comments

FinanceFilter: I recently experienced the wonderful epiphany of 'college student = poor' as I finished paying bills and checking my bank accounts today. It seems that I've spent almost all of my summer job savings, and by February 1st I will have the grand total of approximately $12 to my name.

My basic question is: what should I know before taking out student loans? I'm looking for personal experiences, warnings, recommendations, etc. I want to make sure I do this right so a few years from now I won't be posting an AskMe question about trying to get out of my many-times-deferred loans. I'm not hardcore set on taking out student loans, but it's an option that seems favorable at first glance and has been recommended and pursued by many of my friends. [MI] [more inside]
posted by ElfWord at 8:27 PM PST - 17 comments

The wife and I are probably breaking up. We've been together for a few years for the benefit of one kid, and another one is due this month. The problem - her family is on one coast, mine is on another. We are near mine. I'm concerned that she might just pack up and take our kids.

Is there anything I can do to keep her from leaving town? We've just bought a house, and I have no job prospects if I have to follow her to be with my kids. She hasn't worked in years, and we're here primarily to make a good living. If she leaves, I feel she will find a way to use this against me.
posted by anonymous at 8:06 PM PST - 21 comments

Any serious drawbacks to using an external DVD burner (as opposed to a regular, "internal" one) I should know of? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by kchristidis at 6:32 PM PST - 12 comments

My boyfriend and I are looking to take a trip somewhere in the eastern/midwest US for President's Day weekend. We're looking for either a city that is not a super popular tourist destination, or a small-ish ski resort. [+] [more inside]
posted by orangskye at 6:31 PM PST - 13 comments

I know there is a Sopranos tour of Manhattan, a Sex and the City tour... but it got me thinking: what does a Beastie Boys fan do on his first trip to New York to feel the B-boy vibe?
posted by bering at 6:27 PM PST - 8 comments

I notice that conspicuously absent from public discussions about reform of the Social Security is imposition of a reasonable system of means testing. The idea whereby wealthy seniors, who don't need social security payments to keep themselves in a comfortable lifestyle, don't collect from the general fund which was created to protect the poor and disabled, seems reasonable to me.

Given the alternative solutions of payroll tax increases, elimination of benefits, and/or huge budget deficits, means testing along with Bush's proposed private investment accounts could lead to a win-win social security reform-- one that maintains the traditional safety net for low income seniors and disabled while encouraging savings and investment. What's wrong with this idea? Why is no one making this argument?
posted by NorthCoastCafe at 6:17 PM PST - 23 comments

My dog is starting to roam. Anyone have experience with electric dog fences? How well did they work for you?
posted by atchafalaya at 4:32 PM PST - 17 comments

Small Operating System: A ship that I work on has a VERY old computer (running Win 98) that is used as a public terminal. It's likely a P120, or some such thing. [MI] [more inside]
posted by MotorNeuron at 4:13 PM PST - 18 comments

How do I get into competitive sailing? Primarily multi-hull open ocean regattas? (mi) [more inside]
posted by omidius at 3:55 PM PST - 5 comments

If I have two XP machines on the internet in different locations, and each machine is running a virtual PC version of Windows 98, is it possible through some use of a tunneling protocol or whatever, to make those two virtual 98 machines appear to be on the same local network? In other words ...(more inside) [more inside]
posted by gummo at 3:16 PM PST - 2 comments

Do you belong to a city club? Why did you join? Is anything useful included in your membership? What benefits do you get to compensate for your dues?
I am not interested in country clubs.
posted by Kwantsar at 3:12 PM PST - 3 comments

There is a very simple type of pasta made by sprinkling drops of water over semolina flour then using a sieve to extract the pasta from the flour. Little irregularly shaped and sized pasta nodules (no, not noodles) result. I think the name starts with an 'f' and the recipe is Sicilian. And no, I'm not talking about gnocchi. I seek the name and a more precise recipe.
posted by TimeFactor at 2:50 PM PST - 7 comments

I need comparative opinions on different content management tools [more inside] [more inside]
posted by tdismukes at 1:17 PM PST - 7 comments

Yahoo is now offering domain name registration for $4.98 per year. I have my domains registered with GoDaddy but a couple are due for renewal soon. Is Yahoo's deal too good to be true? Have any of you had bad experiences with them? Should I switch?
posted by madman at 1:07 PM PST - 22 comments

MeFi Book Detectives: It's a young adult novel I read back in the 80s, about a melancholy girl who travels back in time to a shamanic tribal village and is initiated into womanhood there. I think she apprentices with the medicine woman. It has been lingering in my unconscious brain for a long time and I feel like I need to read it again. Do you know it?
posted by butternut at 12:46 PM PST - 8 comments

I am looking for an article called "The Dreams Of The Blind" from Joseph Jastrow which has been published in the New Princeton Review in 1888. My Google-Fu and my university's database did not help...
posted by tcp at 12:15 PM PST - 7 comments

Visual Basic 6.0 and Access 2003 question.....(more inside) [more inside]
posted by ttrendel at 11:49 AM PST - 4 comments

Cash Register N00b - looking for pointers on what to get a brand new small business Re: cash register, inventory control, etc.
posted by petebest at 11:47 AM PST - 14 comments

I'm looking for a way to send a weekly email to a list of members of a nonprofit organization I work for. (+) [more inside]
posted by Framer at 10:33 AM PST - 8 comments

I recently purchased an ATI Radeon 9600 AGP graphics card to replace the old AGP card in a Dell Dimension 4100. The new card doesn't work. I know I need drivers for both the card and the Intel motherboard, and I'm having trouble finding the motherboard drivers. [MI] [more inside]
posted by Roach at 10:32 AM PST - 8 comments

Last night I was Googling on my laptop when I started getting non-expected results. The same spammy sites kept getting returned, even when different search terms were used. Repeated virus scans turned up nothing. The same search on my work terminal returns what I expected so I know it's my laptop. ? [more inside]
posted by shino-boy at 8:59 AM PST - 14 comments

WeeGeeFilter/NYCFilter: Does anyone know where exactly the photo "Lower East Side" (also here) by Weegee (Arthur Fellig) was taken? I am interested in finding the exact street address. [MI] [more inside]
posted by toftflin at 8:40 AM PST - 14 comments

My friend has a popular website that has a lot of technical problems. Frequent downtime, sub-standard performance, inconsistent feature implementation, and large numbers of bugs. The software is all custom-written, and clearly needs a complete re-write. He needs help but won't accept it. What can I do?
posted by mosch at 8:24 AM PST - 15 comments

Is there a Windows equivalent to Mac's OSX contact program? Something that is customizable and user friendly? Also cheap and (why the hell not?), able to be networked? I'm a lifetime Mac person who's being forced into using a PC at work. [more inside]
posted by ColdChef at 8:24 AM PST - 4 comments

Is there a script (perl or php, no MySQL because I don't understand it and don't want to learn it) that password-protects a webpage so that it can be viewed only by someone who logs in with a username and a password, and also logs that user, so that you can have a record (very important) of who's viewed the page? If so, where can I get me one?
posted by iconomy at 7:36 AM PST - 11 comments

Remote Desktop for XP: When I log into a remote computer using RD, it logs out the current user. When I end my remote session, the remote user is logged out but the original user (the only other user on the remote machine) is not logged back in. How can I set up XP or Remote Desktop so that, when a Remote Desktop session ends, the remote computer logs a specific user back in?
posted by gd779 at 7:36 AM PST - 9 comments

Math learning software for kids? Specifically, 4th or 5th grade level.
posted by TurkishGolds at 7:35 AM PST - 3 comments

Do you find that MS Office for OS X runs faster than MS Office for Mac OS 9...., run on an OS X Mac in Classic mode (or, whatever it's called...) [more inside]
posted by ParisParamus at 6:05 AM PST - 9 comments

Help me with display ideas. I have a collection of probably 40 or 50 small laminated cards (picture backstage passes) that I would like to display in my apartment. I had them all taped to a wall forming one giant blocky collage, but was wondering if there's a better way.
posted by helcat at 5:52 AM PST - 16 comments

DogFilter: My dog has taken to waking me up in the middle of the night. Help. [more inside]
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 5:26 AM PST - 22 comments

I might have scammed my way onto local radio with the promise of a show dedicated to musical acts whose careers have been of a decent length, but who haven't lost their touch (e.g. Nick Cave will be in, Morrissey won't) - or those acts who've noticeably improved with time (I think Beethoven's the best example, but classical music won't be getting a run). Any ideas to fill three four-hour shows?
posted by bunglin jones at 2:04 AM PST - 77 comments

My girlfriend and I are friends with another couple whom we'd like to become, er, more intimate with. Unfortunately, they, like us, are very reserved, and don't tend to talk about sex, so we have no idea how to begin to broach the subject. The friendship is very important to us, and we don't want to ruin it. What should we do?
posted by anonymous at 12:35 AM PST - 38 comments

Gadget question: I like reading, and there's lots of stuff online. HTML books, PDA's of court rulings and studies, "work offline" site downloads... anything and everything you could want. I can't stay at home all day and read it, and I'm not stationary while I'm out running errands, so I'm looking for a small, portable PDA thingie with a color screen and PC browser/reader capabilities. It's good if it's got herculean batteries and best if runs on AA or AAA, it absolutely must be available online, and I like if it's cheap/secondhand. Googling reveals proprietary ebook readers and powerhouse PDA's that do way more than I need. Has anyone had any experience with these kinds of devices, do you know where to look for one, any recommendations on what to buy?
posted by saysthis at 11:54 PM PST - 16 comments

PC video to TV filter! [more inside]
posted by freudianslipper at 10:13 PM PST - 9 comments

I'd like to shoot a series of shorts with security cameras, as well as some with lipstick cameras and the like. Nothing illegal or snoopy - I'm just going for the look itself in some films. Does anyone have any recommendations, or advice from experience?
posted by Sticherbeast at 6:10 PM PST - 5 comments

Website question. I'm helping a friend with a sports memorabilia site that sells merchandise. Currently he is using google adsense pay per click. Is there a simple way to track visitors who click from the ad to see if they are the ones who make a purchase? (MI) [more inside]
posted by keithl at 5:40 PM PST - 7 comments

I just scored a bimonthly live dj gig, the theme of which is jazz. I am pretty well grounded in the classics, and am into modern bands/peeps such as Happy Apple, D. Krall and Charlie Hunter, I was wondering what people out there suggest looking at for brand new jazz, what is exciting nowadays?
posted by edgeways at 5:22 PM PST - 21 comments

Any experiences with pityriasis rosea? I seem to maybe in theory have a case of it. [more inside]
posted by cortex at 5:08 PM PST - 11 comments

Is there any place online (or off) that will allow you to see the total number of books sold for a particular title? I happen to be interested in non-fiction titles, but a fiction list would be interesting too. Is this something book publishers make public? I'm primarily interested in a North American total and it would have to be granular enough to record sales of even a few thousand . . .
posted by jeremias at 5:06 PM PST - 8 comments

While in Vegas talking about the presence of legalized prostitution, my partner (female) broached the subject of a threesome (thus making it two girls and one man, myself). After I ascertained she wasn't joking, I realized I didn't have the first clue about how/whether to actually make it happen (i.e. how to get in touch with a call girl who does couples, what the proper etiquette is, how much would it actually cost, how to make sure you're getting a relatively attractive girl, potential pitfalls I wasn't seeing, whether my girlfriend would actually collapse into a ball of shame afterwards, etc). Does anyone have personal experience with this sort of situation, or have resources to direct me to regarding the logistics of couples with call girls? My girlfriend explicitly said she would only do it with a paid girl because then we'd never see her again and there would be no aspect of jealousy involved, so friends are out of the question. Please only respond with serious answers (esp. to the specific questions above), since I can think of snarky jokes on my own...
posted by anonymous at 4:51 PM PST - 23 comments

I broke my dominant arm on Sunday, and I'd like some tips for how to cope with the recovery process. [more inside]
posted by cmonkey at 4:38 PM PST - 13 comments

I need help locating Vigenère cypher decoder. [more inside] [more inside]
posted by ..ooOOoo....ooOOoo.. at 3:50 PM PST - 4 comments

I want to make my website more modular and easier to update. I have no CMS ability, and no interest in frames What I want is to have something like "index.html" look into some other text or HTML file and load up and display the information (Text, HTML, CSS divs, Links).
As an example I want to have one central text file that saves the banner and navigation buttons of the site so that I only have to update that one file to make site-wide changes.
To me this is somewhat like frames (but not passe) and like an array (I use one Java array to display images) but I want to display code etc. I haven't been able to tinker with it and make it work, and, though I'm asking for it, it doesn't seem to be on google. Anyone?
posted by Napierzaza at 3:23 PM PST - 19 comments

Gameboy cartridge carrying case. Looking for a way to carry GBA cartridges around without mucking them up. [MI please] [more inside]
posted by Lizc at 2:59 PM PST - 10 comments

I am trying to find a cell phone suited to someone with osteo arthritis and reduced vision [more inside] [more inside]
posted by tomble at 2:45 PM PST - 5 comments

Simplifying eps vector drawings. I'm looking for a way to eliminate overlapping paths in complex line drawings. Almost all of the lines are made up of multiple independent, straight paths sitting precisely on top of each other. To shrink the file size and make editing easier I'd like to get rid of this redundancy. Is converting to raster then back to vector the best solution? [more inside]
posted by shoos at 2:36 PM PST - 18 comments

UK Towns/areas to visit in the spring? (MI) [more inside]
posted by darsh at 2:32 PM PST - 23 comments

I need help selecting a new wireless card for my PC [more inside, obviously] [more inside]
posted by The God Complex at 2:29 PM PST - 5 comments

What's your favorite online/brick supplier for blank tee shirts? hooded sweatshirts (with and w/o zippers)? baby tees/female-cut shirts? [more inside]
posted by fishfucker at 1:54 PM PST - 5 comments

What does this mean? I'm having a hard time deciphering a line from last week's episode of West Wing [MI] [more inside]
posted by m@ at 1:39 PM PST - 9 comments

Speaking of New Orleans, I am going to Mardi Gras with some friends but would like some off-the-beaten-path suggestions for things to do. Stuff like jazz, cemeteries, unique cuisine, etc. (with no major budgetary concerns).

From my memory of MG 2000, Bourbon Street gets pretty old pretty quickly.
posted by bikergirl at 1:19 PM PST - 4 comments

Dealing with suicide. No, not me, someone in my family, who is now dearly departed.

Comments, suggestions, advice? Thanks.
posted by anonymous at 1:15 PM PST - 10 comments

Our next door neighbor offered to split the cost of a cord of wood with us, and we agreed. However, it ends up our neighbor bought wood that is not quite cured yet. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how we might speed up the curing process? Is this even possible?
posted by terrapin at 1:09 PM PST - 10 comments

So I want to retool the look of my resume… [MI] [more inside]
posted by Heminator at 12:19 PM PST - 7 comments

I have a cellphone contract with J-Phone in Tokyo that just renewed itself for another year. The problem with that is that I'm no longer in Tokyo. The English J-Phone website says I must report in person to cancel my contract. This is not a possibility. Is there another option I have for canceling this contract? [more inside]
posted by deafmute at 12:13 PM PST - 3 comments

A couple years ago I had a call back audition with a singing group called Chanticleer. Part of the audition was sight reading medieval notation [pdf]. Having never learned to read medieval notation, I failed this portion of the audition miserably. I am a very good sight reader of standard musical notation, but I find myself struggling very much with medieval notation. I have a liber usualis (I got mine free. Yes, I'm lucky.), and I found this great site with midi files of the tunes (They match, some of the time, I think.), but I'm still having problems. Any suggestions?
posted by Igor XA at 12:08 PM PST - 7 comments

Soooo, in the last 6 months, I've been pulled over twice for 'Suspicion of drunk driving', both times I've been given a field sobriety test and failed, both times I've subsequently blown a 0.0, because I was stone cold sober. What exactly is the field sobriety looking for? Why am I failing? [more inside]
posted by patrickje at 11:56 AM PST - 33 comments

Do you know of a bar with a full-size pool table in Manhattan? [more inside]
posted by nicwolff at 11:43 AM PST - 10 comments

What event in or relating to professional sports sticks out most in your mind? Why, and what does it mean to you? (+) [more inside]
posted by cactus at 11:32 AM PST - 24 comments

Let's say you moderate a commercial message board. It doesn't get a whole lot of participation, but that's fine. Hopefully in time, usage will grow. Now one day, somebody comes along and posts a couple of messages that seem to verge on talking-to-yourself-on-the-side-of-the-road mentally disturbed. They're nominally on topic, but still sort of off. Do you delete them or leave them up?
posted by willnot at 10:39 AM PST - 7 comments

[OffensiveSlangFilter] What exactly does "shay," as in "shay whitey," mean? From whence does it come?
posted by callmejay at 10:12 AM PST - 7 comments

I would like to delve into the works of Bukowski. Where should I begin? I'm more interested in his poetry than his prose at this point, although I am open to any suggestion. I particularly like this poem. I've searched the archives, but only random references exist. Thank you.
posted by basicchannel at 10:12 AM PST - 9 comments

The Wife and I are having our first child this summer (yikes!, yea!). Anyone know of some groovy sites to shop for cute and tasteful baby stuff?
posted by ducktape at 9:40 AM PST - 24 comments

I'm interested in participating in a US-wide clinical medical research study. Have you ever taken part in one? Did you get any benefit from it? Any harm? Did you ever learn what drug (or placebo) you had taken?
posted by Alylex at 9:26 AM PST - 17 comments

Has anyone transitioned from rigid gas permeable contact lenses to glasses? Did your prescription stay stable? Why do glasses make me feel cross eyed and fuzzy headed compared to RGPs--do I just have to wait it out and get used to them, or was the prescription wrong? Can I wear RGPs part of the time and glasses part of the time? [NB: I've never gotten good answers on these questions from my eye doc.]
posted by insideout at 9:24 AM PST - 13 comments

Can dogs eat beef bones? My dog loves them (the raw discarded sort from butchers or rib joints) but when I give him one he goes crazy, actually consuming the bone and digging into the marrow. It worries me, but I've heard the marrow is good for them. But every time I've given him one I've had to take it away because he just gets too crazy. I know they can't have chicken bones (obviously, ow!) but what are the risks of giving him a beef bone as an occasional primal treat, even if it means he'll likely chew the whole thing up?
posted by Peter H at 9:12 AM PST - 19 comments

Looking for solid, basic client extranet tools... [+] [more inside]
posted by LairBob at 7:16 AM PST - 13 comments

What are the best camera settings to use when taking pictures at a concert in a small club? Mine always come out really blurry. Canon S45 digital camera, if that helps any (4mp).
posted by adampsyche at 6:58 AM PST - 37 comments

Another music question: I'm learning french at evening classes and would like to get hold of more music (pop, rock, jazz, hip-hop...) with lyrics in french [+]. [more inside]
posted by handee at 5:16 AM PST - 51 comments

SAN FRANCISCO - We are flying into San Francisco (April). Can anyone suggest a good hotel for a couple of days that is easy to get to from the airport without car?
posted by Frasermoo at 3:51 AM PST - 14 comments

Grammar/ Style Filter:
I'm writing an undergraduate history thesis. Should I do all I can to avoid the passive voice? [More has been placed inside] [more inside]
posted by PhatLobley at 3:47 AM PST - 55 comments

How do I promote my Windows based free SMS application without spending any money? (more inside) [more inside]
posted by ralawrence at 1:48 AM PST - 13 comments

What's a good circuit board/breadboard simulator for PC? [more inside]
posted by Edible Energy at 11:51 PM PST - 6 comments

I have a recent edition of Mary Poppins signed by P.L. Travers shortly before she died. How would I go about valuing such a thing and what would be the best way to sell it? I'm in South Australia if that makes a difference.
posted by Savvas at 11:35 PM PST - 3 comments

I need advice on a new humidifier. [MI] [more inside]
posted by Caviar at 10:36 PM PST - 8 comments

FictionFilter: what are the legal ramifications of using living or dead individuals and corporations in fictional works, without obtaining consent and in ways which diverge from history?

Let's say, for example, I'm writing a novel about the movie business and a fictional motion picture studio. For sh*ts and giggles, call it MetaMovies. Can I write that MetaMovies purchased the MGM library of films in the mid-90s, and that the fictional founder of MetaMovies (the MetaMogul, if you will) was, at various points in his life, married to Marilyn Monroe and Ava Gardner? Fueded with Orson Welles? Famously knocked out Marlon Brando when Brando walked off the set of a completely fictitious movie? I've seen novels that have dealt fictitiously with the lives of public figures, but I've never seen corporations woven into those stories -- nor do I know whether their authors have had to approach the estates of celebrities to authorize said treatment. However, I recently finished the excellent Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, and the detailed descriptions of the English government's attempt to use magic against Napoleon's encroaching army lent a cogent sense of verisimilitude to the otherwise fantastic subject matter.
posted by mrkinla at 9:52 PM PST - 16 comments

I want to scan an old Life magazine article and post it on the Web. The magazine is bigger than the scanner. How should I go about this for a.) best legibility of text, and b.) smallest file size? Any particular combination of dpi and scaling that I should try? [more inside]
posted by Vidiot at 9:48 PM PST - 16 comments

MusicFilter: I decided to explore new territory in the new year. I want to discover at least one new artist a week and I'm kind of lost...(come inside to the dance!) [more inside]
posted by amandaudoff at 8:45 PM PST - 25 comments

I just took a nap, and was having a really interesting dream--which I can't remember right now, except for the ending, in which someone poked me in the stomach, waking me up.

When I woke up, my cat had just jumped up on me, and was pressing her paw into my stomach. I'm amazed that this was translated into the dream so quickly, but it's happened to me before with other things, like sounds. Does anyone know how the brain can so quickly react to "reality" stimuli and so quickly convert them into dream material? [more inside]
posted by interrobang at 7:52 PM PST - 35 comments

[FlattenFilter] Help! Expensive print damaged in shipping. Any way to flatten out kinks? (more inside) [more inside]
posted by LongDrive at 7:19 PM PST - 6 comments

BasqueFilter: If the Basque Nation was ever established, what would it be called? Is there an official title or name for it? Extra points for the name in both English and Euskaran.
posted by cosmonik at 7:05 PM PST - 12 comments

Why is that thoughts seem to occur in the physical place inside one's head? Do blind or deaf people experience the physical locality of consciousness in the same way that others do?
posted by swift at 5:44 PM PST - 25 comments

Portuguese authors for the learner. I am teaching myself Portuguese and want some enjoyable fiction to read for exercise. Any recommendations for authors with a simple prose style (a la Hemingway or Steinbeck)? Bonus points for Brazilian setting.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 5:41 PM PST - 14 comments

Someone jumps or falls from a great height, presumably to their death, and shouts, "I regret nothing!" I've seen this used as a joke in a number of places, but where does it originate? It appeared on The Simpsons in 1992 - a guy yells it when he falls through an opening drawbridge while waiting in line for the Itchy and Scratchy movie - but it seems like it has to be a reference to something else.
posted by Fourmyle at 5:24 PM PST - 28 comments

I'm looking webhosting with these features: (1) will let me host and manage dns mappings for an unlimited number of domains (2) will let me create and manage an unlimited number of MySQL number of domains (3) ssh access (4) PHP/Perl/Python and maybe even Ruby and (5) Reliability. [more inside]
posted by weston at 5:06 PM PST - 9 comments

How to access live UK only streams? [more inside]
posted by clarkie666 at 5:00 PM PST - 2 comments

Is there a traditional kind of flower or color of rose given for the birth of a baby boy? A friend of mine just delivered, and I want to skip the blue teddy bears and get this right.
posted by symbebekos at 3:43 PM PST - 5 comments

The US Department of State Foreign Service Written Exam is coming up in just about three months. For those who have taken it in the past, any suggested readings or study tips? For anyone planning on taking it this year, how are you preparing?
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 3:27 PM PST - 8 comments

My retirement fund is with an online brokerage firm. The firm recently got bought by a national megabank. The bank's web-site, however, says that it only works with MSIE. I dumped IE in favor of FireFox a long time ago and hate to go back to it -- especially when it comes to sensitive financial information. I'd love to switch to another online brokerage, but the bank charges a penalty for transferring accounts.

Any ideas on how to move my account without incurring penalties? As far as I'm concerned, by not supporting alternative browsers (given the US-CERT warnings against IE) they're failing to provide service and that should be grounds enough for me to leave them behind without penalty. It galls me that I have to pay them a fee so I can get away from their crappy service. Is there any sort of FTC or banking rule I can rely on to make a stronger case?
posted by fubar at 2:24 PM PST - 8 comments

Does anyone use any online finance/investment account aggregators that do charting? I like the "money manager" at Yahoo Finance, but it's shutting down on Feb 1. (more) [more inside]
posted by rkent at 1:23 PM PST - 3 comments

I've written a feature length screenplay. I showed it to a friend who's an editor at a publishing company in the UK. He suggested I consider doing the script as a graphic novel. Is there a resource on the web for writer's and artists to connect? Also, is there a guide to transform my movie from screenplay format to comic book format?
posted by Shanachie at 1:12 PM PST - 9 comments

Any experience with ING Orange Savings/other internet banks? (+) [more inside]
posted by _sirmissalot_ at 12:47 PM PST - 30 comments

I'm replacing the zip drive in my 450MHz AGP "Sawtooth" G4 with a DVD burner. Any tips? [more inside]
posted by mds35 at 11:44 AM PST - 9 comments

"Perhaps, rabbit. Perhaps." - An old boss of mine used this quote all the time. Any clue what it's from?
posted by FreezBoy at 11:21 AM PST - 16 comments

I got a flat tire last night. I had been planning on getting two new tires and moving the front two to the back anyhow because they needed to be replaced, so this was no big deal (the flat ended up being one of the back tires, luckily). When I went to get them replaced, the tire guy told me that moving the front tires to the back was the "old school" way of replacing them, and that putting the new ones on the back would be better because they would ground the car and prevent spin-outs. Does anyone know if he is full of crap or if this is the truth? My dad was the one who suggested moving the fronts to the back...and I guess my dad is pretty "old school"...but I'm still wondering which way is better?
posted by fabesfaves at 11:15 AM PST - 19 comments

Why are stories "continued on page #" in newspapers and magazines? I've always felt that it disrupts reading because I have to go back and forth between the pages. Isn't it possible to print a story uninterrupted?
posted by pinkkitty at 11:02 AM PST - 19 comments

I need help with recursive constructing of an xml object in flash.
Google just doesn't cut it for me - maybe you can [+] [more inside]
posted by FidelDonson at 10:53 AM PST - 4 comments

What is the origin of the phrase "patience, grasshopper"? I'd never heard it said before, and in the last few months it's popping up around me like kudzu. Often said in a fake "kung fu movie" accent.

Google is not helping (I only get pages where people use the phrase, including a site about learning Icelandic and another about how to have multiple orgasms), and I couldn't find anything in the AskMe or MeFi archives either.
posted by matildaben at 10:19 AM PST - 7 comments

I'm moving into a line of work where I will have to talk to people more than usual, work with them on projects, and generally be fairly talkative and sociable. I have no trouble with my friends or people I know well, but sometimes, with new people, I clam up, or talk quickly in one long monotonous ramble - yet sometimes I'm fine. It's basically a lack of confidence in myself - how can I trick myself into feeling confident, or at least talking normally?
posted by anonymous at 9:40 AM PST - 17 comments

I don't judge people according to their race, but when I see someone of another race acting like a stereotypical member of that race, I do judge them and want nothing to do with them. Am I a racist asshole who thinks everyone should act white, or is it just unfortunate that certain behaviors I find unpleasant happen to be associated with race?
posted by anonymous at 9:40 AM PST - 49 comments

My mother's computer has picked up a persistant trojan virus. She's over 1,000 miles away so I can't work on her PC myself, so I've been talking her through things on the phone. AVG Free 7.0 detects the virus and claims to remove it, but it always comes back the next time she scans. The only thing she can tell me about the virus is that AVG removes a file with a mixture of English and Cyrillic letters in it. Any idea how I can help her slay this thing once and for all?
posted by Servo5678 at 9:16 AM PST - 15 comments

A while ago I listened to The Fourth Tower of Inverness and enjoyed it immensely. Are any of the other radio series from ZBS Media and Meatball Fulton worth it (particularly the subsequent Jack Flanders stories), or was Fourth Tower the pinnacle? The sound samples on their site are awfully short and the sets are a bit expensive for a blind buy.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 8:57 AM PST - 4 comments

Is 'SEEN' a legitimate pronounciation of the name Sean? (I thought the MSNBC anchors were mistaken at first, but they're still at it, calling weatherman Sean Mclaughlin 'seen'. You'd think he'd have corrected them by now.)
posted by Paddle to Sea at 8:22 AM PST - 48 comments

How long before Valentine's Day can I buy roses and hope for them to still be decent? Are all the flower vendors hip to this tactic?
posted by kyle at 8:18 AM PST - 6 comments

Is there any web-based service that will image (render) a webpage using specific rendering engines, and then email or display the result? I'm developing on a Mac, and experiencing some weird Explorer 6 CSS problems, and don't have a PC handy to troubleshoot.
posted by jpburns at 7:21 AM PST - 10 comments

Anyone ever tried a liver flush? Opinions on its value? [+] [more inside]
posted by spock at 6:57 AM PST - 23 comments

I live in the UK and I want a TiVo-like device, but I can't get Sky+. What are my best options? [more inside]
posted by yankeefog at 6:51 AM PST - 13 comments

Let's suppose it's Valentine's Day, and your partner - to whom you are married and with whom you live - receives a beautiful big bunch of flowers.... from someone else. Do you care? Would it cause difficulties with your partner or might you even be flattered that other people are attracted to them? Would you wonder who it's from? If you suspected who it was from, how might you react towards them?
posted by skylar at 4:33 AM PST - 54 comments

Database Query [+] [more inside]
posted by benjh at 3:47 AM PST - 11 comments

I just recently discovered Czech Radio 1 which plays, at least from what I've listened to, hip-hop/indie/dance. I know there's BBC Radio 1 and KCRW, but they're both in English. Are other stations with similar formats but in different languages? Internet streaming would be ideal.
posted by scalespace at 10:22 PM PST - 5 comments

Roadside Attractions: A friend of mine is moving and I've been asked to help. We will take two days driving from Ohio to Florida along I-75. We're already planning to see Rock City as the barn roofs suggest. I'd like to hit a few more spots, if possible. Can you lovely MeFi readers give me some ideas? Strange is good, and fun to photograph is better.
posted by cmyk at 9:34 PM PST - 25 comments

I am currently a philosophy student at the University of British Columbia (Canada). I've applied to transfer to the Institute of Philosophy at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven for their strong involvement with continental philosophy, and because I want to live in Europe. Will getting a Belgian degree significantly complicate things for me if I choose the pursue a graduate degree in North America? Will it be detrimental to getting in to a good school?
posted by ori at 9:09 PM PST - 13 comments

Is there any etymological relationship between the non-nominative Latin forms of Jupiter [Iuppiter, Iovis], e.g. iove (which would be pronounced "yohweh"), and the Hebrew name for God, Yahweh?
posted by stopgap at 9:00 PM PST - 11 comments

I gave my girlfriend's grandmother a set of kitchen knives as a gift. She told my girlfriend I needed to give her a penny as well, for good luck. I remember when I was a kid, my dad would give me pocket knives, but ask that I give him a penny in return (he used to say something like, "You can't give or trade someone for a knife. You have to sell it to them." I can understand the selling part, except why would I have to give my girlfriend's grandmother a penny as well? Anyone know the origin of this tradition? Or is it a superstition?
posted by robbie01 at 8:45 PM PST - 18 comments

Doorfilter: A convent nearby is being torn down, and on a whim i bought a number of the room and closet doors from the place. Four of the doors will fit my current house perfectly (style-wise - they are bare-wood exact matches for my painted doors), but four are a different, older style. They're solid pine, five-panel, and they're stained to a dark color. I also pulled all the frames and jambs, for the [cough] hell of it. My question: what can I do with these? I'm mechanically inclined, but I've never done much woodworking.
posted by notsnot at 8:29 PM PST - 8 comments

I'm trying to convert cassette tapes to MP3s using MusicReplay software. This involves use of an amplifier. I don't know what an amplifier is, if my stereo has one, and if I've hooked it up right. For whatever reason, it's not working. Help, please. [MI] [more inside]
posted by duck at 7:28 PM PST - 13 comments

Six characters, in search of a way to replace them
I have a series of files whose names I'd like to edit by taking out part of the name and replacing it but the part I'd like to remove from each file name is different. [more] [more inside]
posted by emelenjr at 7:13 PM PST - 17 comments

Do you have any experience in dealing with smart, energetic kids with impulse problems and oppositional attitudes, with or without ADHD diagnosis? We're looking for dietary, behavioral modification or even meds suggestions. [MI] [more inside]
posted by sacre_bleu at 5:44 PM PST - 27 comments

ShrinkFilter: I've been increasingly stressed, self-loathing and distracted for years, and (since my spouse and I are having a baby in a few months) have decided I need to Get Professional Help--mostly to figure out what's wrong with me and deal with it, so I don't pass it on to our kid. But "professional help" is a very big category, and I need to narrow it down. I want to find somebody whose perspective is "let's figure out the big problems and how you can fix them, as efficiently as possible," rather than "there's nothing wrong with you that years of expensive chatting can't prolong." I'd also like to avoid medication. How do I find the right... therapist? counselor? I don't even know what the right word is.
posted by anonymous at 5:15 PM PST - 26 comments

[MovingtoCleveland filter] My SO and I are moving to Cleveland. We have some questions about life choices, buying a house in a new city, and Cleveland in particular. [MI] [well, OH actually]. [more inside]
posted by googly at 5:14 PM PST - 25 comments

I'm looking for books and\or films about the rise of Nazism and fascism. [+] [more inside]
posted by sanko at 4:29 PM PST - 30 comments

What utilities have you used to examine I.E. history? [more inside]
posted by Dean_Paxton at 4:08 PM PST - 4 comments

Indesign CS and OT fonts short version: can't access OT features on a font LONG VERSION INSIDE [more inside]
posted by Grod at 4:05 PM PST - 7 comments

BookBindingFilter: I greatly enjoyed reading this edition of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. Some of the enjoyment was doubtless due to Tolkien's deathless prose, but I was surprised to find myself also enjoying handling, looking at, poring over a really beautifully crafted edition, with careful binding, stuck-together pages, a little built-in bookmark, etc.

Can anyone suggest other books I might like for these same reasons? Genre's not important; I'm a cheerful omnilege.
posted by ikkyu2 at 4:05 PM PST - 24 comments

So I'm looking at lead crystal wine glasses for serving purposes. Does the lead in lead crystal leach out into the wine, and from there into the drinker's body? If safe, are there reasonably priced glasses that one would recommend, which are useful for both red and white wine?
posted by AlexReynolds at 4:01 PM PST - 10 comments

What are some non-pornographic movies that contain examples of masochistic behavior? [MI] [more inside]
posted by hobbes103 at 3:01 PM PST - 44 comments

I hate to seem like a crass opportunist, but would anyone have an idea what an unused ticket to the March 6 1973 taping of The Tonight Show would be worth? It's in good condition.

As a 10 year, I was denied admission (nobody under 18) during a family trip to California.
posted by davebush at 2:57 PM PST - 3 comments

We recently rented "The Door in the Floor" (highly not recommended). At one point, I turned to my wife and said that I thought the only redeeming thing about the movie was Jeff Bridges' hat. So does anyone who has had the misfortune of seeing that movie know anything about that hat or even where to find a similar hat?
posted by Heatwole at 11:26 AM PST - 8 comments

Fuel Filter? Has anybody had long-term experience using North American bio-diesel in a TDI? My dealership is dead-set against it, but my European friends swear by it. (I tend to distrust my VW dealer, but I don't want to be cavalier) Since I live in a moderately cold climate, I would only be using it in summer.
posted by gesamtkunstwerk at 10:55 AM PST - 11 comments

So they hired a new manager at work. In the past, this position has Always been someone promoted from within, but this time someone from outside was hired. After only three weeks with the company, the new manager is beginning to institute drastic policy changes. For example, a new schedule for all of us has been proposed, despite the fact that the new manager has never even worked the late shift, the morning shift, the swing shift, or the weekend shift. What is the best way to handle this type of situation? (Without "leave the job" as an option.)
posted by anonymous at 9:51 AM PST - 19 comments

One of us needs to be in Providence, RI. One in Bedford, MA. Is the commute doable from one to the other? Are there good places to live in between? We're 20something liberals, but we're okay with interesting suburbs.

(Posting anon to preserve pseudononymity.)
posted by anonymous at 9:50 AM PST - 13 comments

I've had the flu since Wednesday. I haven't left my apartment since Friday. A friend just told me that I won't get better unless I air out my apartment and take a walk outside. Is that true? Can germs live in your bedsheets?

I'd readily go outside, but there's two feet of snow and it's fourteen degrees out.
posted by jsavimbi at 8:06 AM PST - 15 comments

Typepad photo galleries: how do you get your photos to appear in the desired order? I don't always want them ordered by date taken or date uploaded, but there aren't any other options. I end up having to make fake dates for them all. Until that glorious day when Typepad implements a drag-and-drop ordering system, any suggestions?
posted by schoolgirl report at 6:34 AM PST - 3 comments

Is there a Firefox extension out there which allows you use the right-click menu to select and drop bits of text (for example html) you use repeatedly, into a document, for example a Blogger post?
posted by feelinglistless at 5:09 AM PST - 8 comments

If one is located in Canada, and would like to invest in non-US/Canada securities and currency, are there any simple, inexpensive (fee-wise), mainstream methods to do so? I used to have an account at Interactive Brokers where this would be an option but I found them a little bit badly integrated with the Canadian banking system (i.e. not mainstream).
posted by Big Fat Tycoon at 4:55 AM PST - 2 comments

I have to learn a new way to communicate in my workplace. That giant flushing sound you hear from the more inside is my career. [more inside]
posted by TomSophieIvy at 1:24 AM PST - 35 comments

Is there a free (some ads okay) online bloghosting service that allows you to categorize posts? For example, could I post something, categorize as "school," and then on the side of the page have a list of categories so I could click there and access those posts quickly?

blogthing seems to do it, but are not accepting new accounts presently. It seems to me that MovableType can do this, but I am awful at learning how to use such things properly.
posted by synecdoche at 11:20 PM PST - 11 comments

GilbertoFilter? I am trying to learn the name of a specific song by Astrud Gilberto. The now-defunct Bossanova FM internet radio station used to play it. The song's catchy and upbeat (I can hum the tune, but of course don't know any of the words . .) and the main theme/message is that a woman always has to work. It isn't on the 'Finest Hour' collection, and it appears to not be referenced anywhere online . . . Might anyone know this song or at least have a good guess at it?
posted by oldtimey at 10:14 PM PST - 4 comments

Our 1200 sq. ft. partially finished basement is cold. There is insulation in the ceiling, and the windows are pretty new. Our thermostat is upstairs, so when the upstairs is comfortable, the basement is about 5-10 degrees cooler (a guess), even though there are heating vents in each room.

Can I just hook up a squirrel fan and pump warm air from the ground floor downstairs? Cut more vents in the ducts? Any other possible cheap/simple solutions?

I get the gnawing feeling that I'm stepping into a complex feedback loop problem--if I install a second thermostat, then the two thermostats duke it out until one of them wins or becomes skynet. Bonus points if you can point me to a place online where I can ask these questions and not get my head ripped off by HVAC professionals.
posted by mecran01 at 10:02 PM PST - 15 comments

What PC games don't require any installation whatsoever? Or put another way, what PC games could I burn to CD/DVD and play on a system that I don't want to copy any files to? Linux-plus-games-on-a-DVD suggestions are also welcomed, although I would prefer games that would run on an existing XP installation.
posted by Jairus at 8:53 PM PST - 12 comments

Driver problem. I recently got a used laptop that included a 11Wave (by WaveBuddy) PCMCIA wireless card. Installation problems inside. [more inside]
posted by drezdn at 8:11 PM PST - 2 comments

Sci-fi story identification filter. I'm trying to remember one about copyright and musicians in the future... I swear I didn't just make it up after reading Lessig. [MI] [more inside]
posted by easyasy3k at 6:58 PM PST - 5 comments

Our family is possibly going on a trip this summer, but I would like to buy non-emergency, non-medical travel insurance. This is basically insurance if I change my mind, or if my plans have to change. My search thus far has proven fruitless. Any suggestions? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by fionab at 6:35 PM PST - 6 comments

OS X stumper: My internal boot drive (160 GB) "info" reports 12.4 GB available, 136.63 GB on disk. A bootable (120 GB) clone shows 55.42 GB available, 55.24 GB on disk. I've run Disk Utility and Disk Warrior, repaired and rebuilt and the report persists. (I checked the disk used with "WhatSize" and, while I've not done the math, the rough aggregate of disk used appears to be more in line with the clone, which is what I expect. I am not sure when this apparent mis-reporting began but I know it was recently.) Googling has failed me. What is going on and how do I fix it?
posted by Dick Paris at 2:10 PM PST - 14 comments

I know I've seen the site before, but after repeated searching through Metafilter and Google, I still couln't find it. Where is the site that has community passwords so you don't need to register for many websites ranging from news sites to random sites.
Thanks and sorry if this is the wrong spot for this.
posted by Like the Reef at 12:43 PM PST - 12 comments

So you're self-employed, and you sign a contract for a moderate-sized, long-term gig (worth $5,000 or so/year), and...you lose your copy of the contract. Your relations with this company over the years have been overwhelmingly friendly and positive. What do you do? Just ask them nicely for a copy?
posted by anonymous at 12:16 PM PST - 12 comments

Name that artist! This poster was the 'centerfold' in a German art magazine back in the mid '90s. Anyone know who the artist might be?
posted by nixxon at 11:50 AM PST - 5 comments

I'm was a big fan of Cape Cod Sour Cream and Chives potato chips. I haven't been able to find them around here in at least a year, maybe two. Here is Southern CT BTW. Why would Cape Cod Potato Chips discontinue their best flavor?
posted by nomad at 11:47 AM PST - 7 comments

Where archive.org fails: I'd like to research the development of news websites - specifically those established by traditional media companies (CNN, The New York Times, etc). While archive.org is a valuable resource, many of the sites I'd like to look at block the automated scripts (robots) that make archiving possible. What's more, some of the sites archived are woefully incomplete and are missing images, etc. Is there an alternative to archive.org or another resource that I might use? [more inside]
posted by aladfar at 11:45 AM PST - 5 comments

Can anyone identify this museum admission tag I found in a box? The symbol on it is a ring, broken in two places. Inside is a standing stick figure with arms outstretched. It is brown and the symbol is white. No text. [Photo inside] [more inside]
posted by smackfu at 11:10 AM PST - 7 comments

Learning to ride a bicycle at the age of 30. Yup and I need to do it alone, unfortunately not because of embarassment (quickly offset by benefit) but because none of my friends *gasp* know how to ride one ! I looked for courses in my city with no luck. Anybody ever did so ? Tips, tricks ?
posted by anonymous at 10:29 AM PST - 34 comments

I've fallen in love with one of my best female friends, someone I have practically no chance of ever being with, and I'm unsure of how to deal with the situation. Do I cut her off completely and try to get over it? Do I act like nothing's happened and continue to be her friend despite the fact that it gets worse every time I talk to her? Do I ask her to give me space without telling her why? Help me, mefites; this is rotting me from the inside out.
posted by anonymous at 10:29 AM PST - 45 comments

I am a really terrible person. I lie to everyone I know, I cheat on people relentlessly, I drink excessively and do things to hurt just about everyone I know. I hate doing these things in retrospect but when it's happening, all I can focus on is how it's benefitting me at the moment.

How do I go from being an asshole who's only concern is his own self interests to being a regular human being who concerns himself with those around him? I'm afraid that if I don't fix this soon, I'm going to lose everyone in my life.
posted by anonymous at 10:29 AM PST - 44 comments

A while ago I watched Real Women Have Curves and heard a beautiful song during the scene part way through the movie when she and the preppy kid are first getting together. Went something like, "nina hermosa, nina something, nina something." Sorry I can't be more specific. Anyway, I bought the soundtrack to get the song and sadly it was not on the soundtrack. Any idea what that song is?
posted by Amizu at 9:46 AM PST - 7 comments

How do I teach myself philosophy? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by sid at 9:16 AM PST - 29 comments

Are there any alternatives to del.icio.us that A) allow private bookmarks and proper categorization, B) have simple (I'm thinking along the lines of FoxyLicious for Firefox) and complete browser integration and C) are reasonably fast.(Gmail-type would be nice, I could tolerate slightly slower)

I have checked Furl, but I get the feeling it's not quite what I want. Hyperlinkomatic seems to be close, but the couple of times I have hit the site it hasn't been teriffically fast, and for my bookmarks that's not really acceptable. Moreover, I haven't seen anything like the above-mentioned FoxyLicious for it. [more inside]
posted by ChrisR at 8:43 AM PST - 5 comments

How do I dispose of my old, broken printer? Recycling preferred.
posted by BackwardsCity at 8:36 AM PST - 4 comments

Futon mattress alternatives? I have a lovely futon frame with a nasty lumpy old futon mattress. I'd like to get rid of the mattress and keep the frame, using it with my air mattress for overnight guests. Does anyone make sofa-type cushions that I could put on the frame to make it more of a couch? Could I make them myself? (+) [more inside]
posted by CunningLinguist at 4:32 AM PST - 14 comments

There used to be a web browser plug-in that let people write stuff all over websites. I think it was called Tribal Voice. Is there anything like that now?
posted by krisjohn at 4:02 AM PST - 9 comments

DietFilter: I am looking for a good diet to follow with my exercise routine. [MI] [more inside]
posted by chiababe at 12:29 AM PST - 33 comments

I just got a letter from my home insurance company (US) saying I need to have an inspection. I've been with them for over 3 years, no claims. Should I be worried? Are they setting me up to cancel my insurance? I've not heard of such a thing before. I'm considering calling my mortgage company, and asking if this is SOP.

I live in a working class town, house built in 1926, in decent shape. I've been making repairs as I could afford them (and figure out how to do them). Because of the age of the house, I'm sure they could find something nasty, if they were really looking.
posted by QIbHom at 11:24 PM PST - 12 comments

I live in a sorta gritty urban area in a ground-floor apartment that has semi-burglar-accessible windows that have no bars or gates. (The landlord is a cheap slum-owning pig, no help.) What should I install myself for serious home security that'll still let me enjoy a nice breeze and also peace of mind and body? Alarms? Internal bars? Any fave products? Money is almost no object, but I'd really rather not have to use a hammer drill on the exterior brick. (Question anonymous for ParanoiaFilter because my name is in my profile and also in the phone book with my address, and I'm a terribly sensible gal.)
posted by anonymous at 9:34 PM PST - 13 comments

I have no visual depth perception, and I would like to learn to fly an aircraft. I have already passed a FAA Class 3 physical, the only restriction being "Must wear glasses".

I'm looking for advice from any pilots/instructors here that have learned to fly without depth perception, or have taught someone without depth perception to fly. What modifications need to be made to a normal flight/ground school curriculum for a student pilot without depth perception?
posted by anonymous at 9:21 PM PST - 13 comments

How best do I use Burrrn? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by bdave at 8:37 PM PST - 3 comments

How can one determine how much tax they're going to pay on their annual bonus? I don't much understand tax schedules or anything, pointers to "for dummies" style-explanation sites would be helpful.
posted by TuxHeDoh at 7:20 PM PST - 11 comments

When I was a kid, my playground (Van Dyke Park in Northern, VA) had a decomissioned military jet (T-133) in the playground...it was a lot like the picture on this guy's site. Did anyone else have any old military hardware as part of the playground? Any pictures? I'm interested in researching this further....
posted by extrabox at 7:05 PM PST - 33 comments

WinXP Home Network: Two machines, each running WinXP. I 'm successfully sharing most of the files in a folder, but get "access denied" on some of them. [+] [more inside]
posted by Daddio at 5:58 PM PST - 7 comments

Can anyone suggest good (and preferably free) video conferencing software? I need to run at 320x240 (min) at close to full motion and XP breaks NetMeeting. I have done some searching around and most of what turns up looks like it is designed for teenage-talking-heads types of chat applications, so I was hoping someone might be able to point me to something a little more industrial strength. Thanks, and the Game Cube suggestion for Christmas was right on.
posted by cgk at 5:54 PM PST - 2 comments

I want to create a few custom T-shirts (1) where my image covers the entire shirt, not just a small rectangular area on the front or back, and (2) that are fitted, not those loose nerdy things, and (3) online. Accurate colour reproduction is fairly important. Is there an online store á la CafePress that lets me do this?
posted by gentle at 4:25 PM PST - 6 comments

Is word of mouth the only way to find a dentist? For every other kind of doctor there are hospital directories online, and everything else it seems like you have to pay for the results. I haven't stayed in the same state for more than a couple years and can never find a really good dentist. They all end up being mediocre, and I would like to see a rock star dentist for a change.
posted by scazza at 4:16 PM PST - 12 comments

When do I call a lawyer? I did some contract work for a small firm that has been unable to pay me. We're way past Net-30, and it's enough money that I can't deal with it in small claims court (about $15k). I'm in contact with them, and I believe that they want to pay me, but simply don't have the cash (I could be wrong). At what point do I stop waiting? Is it worth calling a lawyer if they don't have the money, or is it important to call a lawyer in case they declare bankruptcy?
posted by anonymous at 2:11 PM PST - 13 comments

At the end of interviews I'm often asked if I have any questions. I always think to myself "Lots, but asking about vacation time now might send the wrong message". What kind of questions are the interviews looking for or what kind of questions would be appropriate at this stage rather than at the salary negotiation stage? These are team interviews for large companies and public sector organisations. I'm in Canada.
posted by Mitheral at 2:11 PM PST - 39 comments

What is the proper way to use an alumni directory when inquiring about internship positions? More specifically, what should be in the contents of a letter to an alum who has a cool job but whom I've never met -but potentially could offer a position based on our shared experience at a campus newspaper?
posted by moooshy at 1:26 PM PST - 9 comments

I have been hired to layout a newsletter for print and for publication online. There is an editor who compiles the articles, edits for length, and etc. In this situation, who should be responsible for the copy editor duties? I find that it is a pain to finish the layout and then hear back from the editor that there are several spelling, punctuation, and line break mistakes that need to be corrected (which is generally hard to do in DTP software). Is it unreasonable of me to expect that the copy-editing should be done by the editor and not the layout person?
posted by achmorrison at 1:25 PM PST - 18 comments

Is there such a thing as "bad" gasoline and can it mess up your car? (+) [more inside]
posted by mygothlaundry at 12:06 PM PST - 41 comments

How have Mefites' experiences of modafinil been? I don't suffer from narcolepsy, although I do tend to get my circadian clock askew. Mostly, I'm interested in the nootropic aspects. Can I get a prescription? Or without one? I'm in the US, and without insurance. If not, how does adrafinil compare?
posted by daksya at 12:01 PM PST - 6 comments

Deodorant/anti-perspirant stick (solid) that TRULY does not leave white marks on my clothes? [more inside]
posted by tristeza at 11:53 AM PST - 31 comments

Does anyone have experience with online data storage services -- i.e. backing up important files such as pictures, transaction records, music, etc. on remote storage accessible via the Web? Is there true value in this? Who are the best providers? What should I be paying?
posted by terrier319 at 11:43 AM PST - 12 comments

Out of curiousity (I'm not trying to be political), has it been the standard MO of popularly elected dictators, or any dictator, to tout the freedom of their people? Was the subject of liberty just ignored by leaders of Germany, Italy, Spain, et. al?
posted by borkingchikapa at 11:20 AM PST - 13 comments

Possible LAN/Network adaptor issue with my laptop..more inside [more inside]
posted by puffin at 11:15 AM PST - 4 comments

Web Q&A. I'm looking for a free/cheap web service or tool that will allow a group of people to ask a presenter questions via a web interface. [more inside]
posted by superfurry at 11:00 AM PST - 3 comments

Orthodontics for slackers; I have a lower retainer (metal wire affixed at each end to a tooth with a metal band, behind the teeth) which was installed around the age of 14. It was supposed to be in place for six months or a year, something in that vicinity. My family moved and it was never taken out; I'm now 21. Is this harmful or just annoying? How painful and expensive will it be to have it removed?
posted by IshmaelGraves at 10:40 AM PST - 16 comments

What's the origin of the phrase "Goddam Your Eyes"? Google just returns a million uses of it.
posted by OmieWise at 10:37 AM PST - 18 comments

Can anyone find someplace that lets you make your own O'Reilly book covers? The old site (www.ilbbs.com) doesn't let you anymore (and gives you pop-ups instead).
posted by small_ruminant at 10:32 AM PST - 2 comments

I'd like to have some custom action figures made, and then mass-produced on a smallish scale.... [more inside]
posted by mudpuppie at 10:17 AM PST - 13 comments

GetintheHotTubFilter
We're taking delivery of a new hot tub today and I'm not wholly sure that our deck is strong enough to support it.
Is there a simple way to to check that the deck can withstand the weight? (MI) [more inside]
posted by fenriq at 9:57 AM PST - 14 comments

Looking for advice about building a high-end prosumer or low-end professional video editing computer. [+] [more inside]
posted by socratic at 9:42 AM PST - 18 comments

Why does the New York Times include a line about yesterday's weather in the weather squib on the front page?
posted by scratch at 9:03 AM PST - 7 comments

I'm eating Bumble Bee brand pink salmon out of the can, seeing as how I don't know how or have the means to cook it. I'd like to know if I should worry about contracting salmonella from it, or anything. Thanks.
posted by jimmy at 7:40 AM PST - 24 comments

A friend left her guitar at my house while she moved to the West Coast, so I hung it on one of those guitar hooks to get it out of the way--until it came crashing down two days later, suffering a huge crack in the headstock. Since it's a Gibson Sonex with a bolt-on neck, can the neckpiece simply be swapped out? Is there a good place to get a spare piece? What are the options when a guitar sustains serious neck damage? I assume I'll be paying for it since it was in my care at the time, but then again, I was never asked to babysit--it was just left behind. I guess that leaves me with another, stickier dilemma...
posted by dhoyt at 7:35 AM PST - 21 comments

"I'd suggest ...the UK... You'll get a job doing whatever you want easily, because you've got an American accent" Mefi-Brits & Expats, have you found this to be true? To what extent is an American accent an asset in the UK, if at all?
posted by leotrotsky at 6:59 AM PST - 48 comments

I have a large record collection. For years I've used discount store shelving, DIY CD racks from Record Town and cardboard boxes & milk crates to store them. It always wound up looking sloppy and being kind of ad hoc organizationally. I've looked at the usual furniture outlets, but their either too expensive or not what I'm looking for: a collection of storage units that could stand against one wall in a small room, capable of holding a large quantity of a large variety of media (CD's, LP's 45's cassettes, boxed sets). Does anyone know a place that specializes in large quantity collector shelves at a reasonable price or has anyone come up with a good home-cooked solution?
posted by jonmc at 6:56 AM PST - 21 comments

DentalFilter: I have a small (< 1mm) gap between my two front teeth. It had been 'filled' by my dentist and that last about a year. Well, it fell out yesterday and I'd like to temporarily repair it until I return to my dentist. I have a big weekend full of pictures coming up. Any suggestions how I can temporarily fill this gap to make me feel better? TIA.
posted by seinfeld at 6:55 AM PST - 9 comments

Having sound card/driver issues. MI [more inside]
posted by LouReedsSon at 5:33 AM PST - 5 comments

In Microsoft Word, how do I move/resize a textbox so that the border doesn't fall on the gridlines?
posted by bobo123 at 11:43 PM PST - 2 comments

My husband and I have both been googling for hours, with no luck. I finally gave in and came here to query all of you. Was Chuck Mangione's song "Feel So Good" ever used as the theme song or lead-in to a television show? (MI) [more inside]
posted by routergirl at 10:40 PM PST - 19 comments

MotorFilter: My wife's car's starter is haunted! Twice now, when turning the key to start the car, the engine starts but the starter keeps going, as if I just held the key in the start position. [MI] [more inside]
posted by pzarquon at 10:27 PM PST - 7 comments

CSS/Flash Filter: I'm working on a mockup for a new company website, and I'm not particularly experienced with Flash. The page that I'm working on has a CSS generated menu that when it pops up, comes up under the flash applet. Please excuse the poor coding...
posted by jackofsaxons at 8:44 PM PST - 7 comments

Is there a free VST- or AudioUnit-compatibile plugin designed to remove or reduce compression artifacts from low-quality audio being re-recorded at a higher bitrate? Or special settings for a specific filter that will do this? I need one for AudioHijack on OS X.
posted by Mo Nickels at 8:44 PM PST - 6 comments

What are some good websites that review children's literature? Bonus if the focus is on preschool or early elementary.
posted by dagnyscott at 8:31 PM PST - 6 comments

DC-powered DVD players? I'm living in a country where the AC power is 220 volts, but will be returning to the US, where AC is 110. I want to buy a DVD player that I can use here and at home. [MI] [more inside]
posted by squirrel at 7:54 PM PST - 13 comments

SoundsLikeSomethingMomWouldAskMe: When I try to play mp3s, QuickTime, or other audio files, it sounds like they've gone through a cheese grater. I can play CDs only on the computer's CD player - not through QuickTime or Music Match. This started around the time that two other things happened - upgrade from Win98 to 2000, and a new fan installed. Anybody know what's wrong?
posted by tizzie at 6:58 PM PST - 8 comments

I work in a basement office in a relatively confined area with poor ventilation. I end up with a case of 'office ick' when I leave. It's similar to the way one feels after being on long flight. My hair goes flat. It greases up and so does my face. I feel gross and by 3pm I'm dying for a shower or at least just to wash my hair. This does not happen when I'm not at work. [mi] [more inside]
posted by pieoverdone at 6:38 PM PST - 7 comments

Do you think Napoleon Dynamite is a mook? (Per the PBS Front Line "Merchants of Cool" definition of a mook).
posted by punkfloyd at 6:03 PM PST - 26 comments

PianoFilter: I've been playing piano as a self-taught amateur for close to twenty years; but I never bothered learning many songs. What are the great rock/pop piano songs that I should learn to play?
posted by vraxoin at 6:03 PM PST - 21 comments

What would happen if someone were to build a tunnel or tube into space? (Description inside...) [more inside]
posted by punkbitch at 5:29 PM PST - 11 comments

I'm a non-exempt, non-contract hourly employee who receives a second-shift differential of $.50/hour. Today I noticed that the shift differential is not being figured into my overtime rate — that is, my overtime rate is being calculated at ($N-$.50)*1.5 instead of $N*1.5. Is it normal/legal to ignore shift differential when calculating overtime pay? [more inside]
posted by nathan_teske at 5:29 PM PST - 12 comments

FreakishlyStrongBabyFilter: My 9 month old baby boy is so strong that he's hurting me. He's not quite as muscular as the mutant German baby in this photo, but he's not far off. He's strong enough to pull his hand or foot out of my grasp no matter how tightly I'm holding it, and he's been able to put all his weight on his legs since he was 2 months old. The main problems are that he will strain against the grasp of whoever is holding him. Mostly, who's holding him is me, and by the end of the day my wrists are usually quite painful (as in ibuprofen doesn't help much) and it's exacerbating my carpal tunnel syndrome. He also wants to "pat" me, but he's so strong that it hurts somewhat. It doesn't bug me when he's smacking me on the arms or chest, but he also likes to "pat" me in the face. I wouldn't be suprised if he gives me a black eye one of these days. He seems to be doing it affectionately, so I don't want to scare him out of being affectionate, but being thwacked in the face every day is getting pretty damn old.

Saying "No!", depending on how stern, elicts either no reaction at all, or brief crying, and a quick return to smacking me in the face. I've tried putting him down when he "pats" me or strains against my grasp, but this usually just causes him to scream and cry to be picked up again. I don't know how to make a baby this young understand "Stop that, you're hurting me" or "Pat GENTLY." Any ideas? [more inside]
posted by Shoeburyness at 4:57 PM PST - 17 comments

I'm a graphic designer who is looking to advance my actionscript skills in Flash. What is the best way for "non-coders" to learn more advanced coding? [+] [more inside]
posted by quadog at 4:46 PM PST - 8 comments

SongFilter: I've got in my head to do a mix CD of songs that are ironic or in some way foretelling. Examples I've come up with so far are "Punk Rock Classic" by the Chili Peppers ("Put us on MTV...") and "My Generation" by The Who ("Hope I die before I get old...") Any suggestions?
posted by me3dia at 3:11 PM PST - 25 comments

[TrannyDatingFilter] I am a relatively well adjusted pre-op male-to-female transsexual who has been living as a female since I was a teenager (almost a decade). I put myself through school on my own, gotten a very good job, and have a small group of close friends. I don't advertise what I am - I don't think that I should have to and I pass well enough that people have rarely clocked me. As of late I've been feeling very lonely. I would really love having a boyfriend and eventually a husband and children. I've never dated a man before and I'm wondering how realistic it is for me to find one who isn't interested in me only for my "defect". I've met tranny chasers before and I want nothing to do with them. I don't want to be someones fetish object. I'm kind, sensitive, (mostly!) intelligent, and not a complete eyesore. Is it reasonable for me to think there's a regular guy out there for me? Someone who can love me despite my past? If you're a guy, under what circumstances (if any) could you accept someone like me as a partner? I don't believe my transsexualism defines me - can someone in the role of potential partner be expected to see anything else? You get the idea. I've had this discussion with other transsexuals but I'm interested in the non-transsexual perspective.
posted by anonymous at 2:44 PM PST - 23 comments

I have kind of a n00b question here...I want to format my hd and reinstall everything. How do I save my autofill userids and passwords? I find it a pain when I reinstall IE (or now Firefox) and have to start all those logins from scratch.
posted by zardoz at 2:37 PM PST - 8 comments

Do relational databases always require a static structure? [+] [more inside]
posted by lilboo at 2:03 PM PST - 26 comments

I am a graduate student searching for grant money to support a research project in Ukraine this summer. I don't go to a fancy school and i've never done this before (more inside). [more inside]
posted by milkman at 2:02 PM PST - 9 comments

What can I do with guava paste? [more inside]
posted by painquale at 1:02 PM PST - 15 comments

I've landed what is (for me) a dream freelance gig: writing the liner notes for a new U.S. compilation CD of The Jam. I'm looking for independent confirmation regarding an ad the band took out in an American music magazine (most likely Trouser Press) following their 1982 U.S. tour. (Going underground... inside!) [more inside]
posted by scody at 12:46 PM PST - 9 comments

If I wanted my baby to learn a second language from a family member who speaks it natively, how many hours per week minimum would they need to spend together? I know the more the better, but I am trying to figure out if four or five hours a week will do the trick if we are extremely consistent and do this for many years.
posted by limitedpie at 12:28 PM PST - 12 comments

Can someone explain to me how trademarking works? I am starting a company with some friends and we are trying to come up with a name. When we look up a name to see if it is trademarked at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office site, we see numerous trademarks for the same name. How can this be? Can a name be trademarked by more than one company?
posted by mudhouse at 12:05 PM PST - 23 comments

Un peu de perspective? I'm looking for historical/cultural background for the popular anti-french sentiment in the US. I imagine it began somewhere between when the French helped the US oust the British, and the current Iraq Feud. What's the story(ies)?
posted by Popular Ethics at 11:50 AM PST - 26 comments

What do you call those three-dimensional geometric novelties, consisting of eight cubes, joined to each other at one edge to form one large cube, whose pieces can be flipped around to display different images on the exterior of the large cube? What is the history of this delightful object? What are the geometric priniciples behind it?
posted by Faze at 11:09 AM PST - 15 comments

The UN Charter still lists "the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics" as one of the permanent Security Council members. How was it decided that Russia alone would replace the USSR, and not some representative of all the ex-USSR nations? Was there a vote? Cause I can't find it.
posted by Pretty_Generic at 10:44 AM PST - 6 comments

Why do sites show movies embedded in a tiny web page rather than linking to it so I can view it in the media player of my choice?
posted by Nelson at 10:17 AM PST - 17 comments

Games for a 400MHz PII Rage Pro Win2k boxen? Kids I know would like some video games (especially LANable ones), but their computers aren't so hot. Enemy Territory, BZFlag, and the like have hefty video requirements. Various "free game" resources aren't proving helpful; they're all about the latest&greatest. What's available for old-school systems?
posted by five fresh fish at 10:12 AM PST - 29 comments

Macmini alternatives. I was considering purchasing a Mac Mini to make it a relatively inexpensive home media center, but after upgrading the hard drive to 80GB, adding Bluetooth for a wireless keyboard & mouse, buying the wireless keyboard & mouse, adding 802.11g for home networking, etc the $499 price tag was closer to $850 or more. Can anyone recommend a Windows box manufacturer who makes small form factor PCs for this kind of application?
posted by jonson at 10:02 AM PST - 26 comments

There are these odd metal objects my office mate keeps finding on the road (+) [more inside]
posted by pissfactory at 10:00 AM PST - 12 comments

Atheists, when you attend a public event that features a prayer and you wish to be polite, do you bow your head during the prayer? Do you say "amen" with everyone else? Theists, are you annoyed when others do not bow their heads?
posted by profwhat at 9:58 AM PST - 97 comments

DebtForgivenessFilter: I'm currently student teaching and expect to get my licensure in May or June, and a job shortly thereafter. Problem is, over my educational career, I've managed to accumulate a not-insubstantial amount in student loans. I'd like to see them lessened to vanish entirely. [+mi] [more inside]
posted by absalom at 9:16 AM PST - 8 comments

Target Heart Rate. What damage are you doing, if any, by working out above your so-called Target Heart Rate? [mi] [more inside]
posted by Lola_G at 8:19 AM PST - 17 comments

What's the origin of "oh noes!"? I think I first encountered it at fafblog.
posted by kenko at 8:13 AM PST - 10 comments

Corporate Business Records in France [MI] [more inside]
posted by bkdelong at 8:12 AM PST - 3 comments

Dear AskAutomation&BatchFilter, I have 250 png files in a folder (named like this: cat_80.png, dog_80.png, bird_80.png, etc.). I want to put each png in a folder (1 png per folder, and the folders don't exist yet) that is named based on the png (cat_80.png goes in a folder named cat, dog_80.png goes in a folder named dog). Does anyone know of a free tool (WinXP) or method of doing this? I'd prefer a WYSIWIG or menu-based tool, rather than a pointer to a scripting language, unless it's really easy and idiotproof...
posted by chr1sb0y at 8:05 AM PST - 5 comments

Why would a site suddenly disappear from the Google Directory? It's still in DMOZ...(mi) [more inside]
posted by kittyloop at 7:07 AM PST - 5 comments

Does anyone know of any good resources about the history and current state of Asians who immigrated to Latin American Countries? I know there is a significant population of Japanese in Brazil (1 million), and that significant numbers of Chinese were imported as cheap labor into Panama and other countries. Does anyone know of good websites or books or other resources? I'd be interested in learning more about this. I came across this here but haven't had much other luck turning up stuff.
posted by jare2003 at 6:50 AM PST - 5 comments

I have a lamp with a weird plug. Blurry pictures, but what kind of plug is this? (also here)
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 6:41 AM PST - 10 comments

I am an American and an Australian, I would like to bring some product or service idea from the US to Australia as a business. Please guide me [MI] [more inside]
posted by Dag Maggot at 5:59 AM PST - 16 comments

I've seen a bumper sticker on a significant number of cars, and it's been bugging me for a long time. It's (very roughly) 15x6cm. It has the letters "ET P" in blue on a white field, and there are very small symbols to the left of the E and to the right of the P. I've never been able to get close enough to a sticker to see what they are, nor has googling really been much help. The sticker is almost always on the left of the rear bumper. I can only recall seeing the sticker on my commute in Southern CT, USA, so it's possible it's a regional thing. What is this sticker for? What does it mean?
posted by Plutor at 5:40 AM PST - 18 comments

Scam? I've been contacted and told I was selected to win a prize as a thank you for filling out a survey a few months ago. I have to go to a lunch and draw for which prize I'll receive out of 5. Presumably this is a scam, and I imagine it's a Time Share sales thing. So my question is this, if I go, and withstand the stupid timeshare marketing thing, will I actually get a prize? Or will I be scammed out of that, too? The company in question is 'The Vacation Store' and this is local to Toronto, since there are a lot of Vacation Stores out there on the net.
posted by jacquilynne at 5:11 AM PST - 13 comments

Cabbage soup diet? I've been on it for a two days, and I've lost two and a half pounds. What I'm wondering is how important is the soup recipe (precise ingredients) to the success of the diet — I've seen different variations on the net: some call for mushrooms, some don't; some specify green onions, others just say large onions; some include carrots, others don't. Have any of you tried variations on the soup and still had success? Or is the soup not really the point at all, but just cutting out carbohydrates, fats, etc.? I'd be interested in hearing about your experiences with this.
posted by taz at 4:49 AM PST - 21 comments

About 20 years ago I remember going to country fairs in England where the jokes and novelty stalls sold some stuff that I recall being called "shit spray" (but it was probably called "poo spray" or something). This spray promised that if you sprayed someone's trousers with it, it would make them instantaniously produce hilariously large turds - indeed many stalls often had huge turds in glass cases to prove the point.

What the hell was that spray and did it do anything at all? Oh, and someone please reasure me that the turd in a presentation case was fake...
posted by twine42 at 4:34 AM PST - 5 comments

I was recently in LA and had a strange run in with a well (-enough) known actor. I'm a native Californian and I don't consider myself too concerned with the goings-on of Hollywood, but this was just weird. The incident was so out there that I have to ask: Has anyone else had a bizzare run in with a celebrity? And when you met them/were run over by them/were propositioned for sex by them, were you starstruck at all, even if you don't consider yourself that kind of person (if you obliged them for sex, feel free to share that too)?
posted by liverbisque at 12:56 AM PST - 61 comments

RareBookFilter - Have tried using amazon.com, amazon.fr, amazon.co.uk, bn.com, alibris.com, powells.com, abebooks.com, bibliofind.com, and a saved search on eBay.com, all to track down a certain out-of-print book. No luck. Even the LA and NYC public libraries got nuthin'. Fabled MeFite librarian posse, how the hell can I get my grubby paws on a copy of "Histoire des Juifs de Rhodes, Chio, Cos, etc." by Professor Abraham Galanté (1873 - 1961), published in Istanbul in 1935?
posted by Asparagirl at 10:39 PM PST - 15 comments

Does anyone have experience with non-profit liability insurance policies? We're looking at a general liability policy for our small non-profit, plus liability coverage for individual board members.
posted by F Mackenzie at 8:26 PM PST - 5 comments

HeyLookIt'sAnotherChildren'sBookFilter! Way back when during a John Bellairs kick I read a horror/comedy/fantasy-themed series about a town that the Devil frequently visited (or perhaps set up) and the adventures of its townspeople. [More vague details inside] [more inside]
posted by anonymous at 8:07 PM PST - 4 comments

AskMeFemmes: Keeper and diva cup question. Details, unlike blood, inside. [more inside]
posted by dame at 7:43 PM PST - 36 comments

Weird Apple Mail/IMAP Problem: When I wake up in the morning, I often observe that the following has happened: all the emails that arrived in my Inbox the previous day, which I duly filed away in appropriate folders, have appeared again in my Inbox, so now I have TWO copies of each. More bizarrely, my filters have not been applied, and many emails which usually get routed right away to their own folders are still in my Inbox. What's going on? [more inside]
posted by rustcellar at 7:28 PM PST - 8 comments

Please help my sister out with a huge customer service problem with Dell [MI]. [more inside]
posted by oflinkey at 5:54 PM PST - 27 comments

Why is it still taught that the Earth has seven continents, when it's obvious it has only six, or to be more precise, why are Europe and Asia considered two distinct land masses when it's obvious they are one?
posted by Scoo at 5:24 PM PST - 37 comments

I'm a highschool student inside the beltway, and I'd like to attend a innagural protest tommorrow. Any practical reccomendations for going about this?
posted by phrontist at 4:13 PM PST - 15 comments

So I was perusing Alterslash today and saw a discussion about an article on Technology Review re Immortality research. This is something I myself ask people about and was kind of curious as to what the community response would be.

Leaving aside the actual feasibility of the science, and assuming you could maintain reasonably good health (say frozen at a physical age of 40) would you take Immortality or a hugely extended lifespan (1000+ years) if it were offered to you and why? [more inside]
posted by ad hoc at 2:55 PM PST - 67 comments

A few questions about microphones for recording guitar and vocals at home. (More inside) [more inside]
posted by Camel of Space at 2:42 PM PST - 21 comments

MultipleMoniterFileter: My Google-Fu is suprisingly useless today. I know there's a utility for OSX that allows one mouse to move across all networked monitors, but cannot locate it.
posted by icetaco at 2:23 PM PST - 10 comments

Wine Databases (with barcode support): Does anyone have any experience cataloguing their wine cellar? I have a friend (I wish it were me) with a rather expansive collection of wine and a barcode reader, yet the database that accompanied the reader is quite sparse. Can anyone suggest an alternate, more robust database with barcodes, or another solution out of personal experience? Google returns a mutlitude of dodgy-looking sites making dubious claims. Thanks!
posted by loquax at 2:12 PM PST - 11 comments

Anyone knows where I can download the previous version (v5.42) of F-Secure Anti-Virus? The deal my university got doesn't stand for the current version (v5.43), so I'm left with a key that only works with v5.42. [more inside] [more inside]
posted by kchristidis at 2:01 PM PST - 3 comments

So, I got a new cat (a male, approx. 6 mos. old, not fixed yet). He and my other cat (also male, about 8 mos. old, was fixed about a month ago) were finally introduced after spending three days on opposite sides of a closed door, and they've been rolling around and fighting like crazy. (MI) [more inside]
posted by cilantro at 1:52 PM PST - 23 comments

What is the difference between the sayings, "at first glance..." and "at first blush..."? When would one use "at first blush..." over the other option?
posted by pwb503 at 1:46 PM PST - 15 comments

Why does Old Navy put stripes on the inside of the collar where it will never be seen when it is worn?
I have 2 different shirts from Old Navy, one is a V neck wool sweater, the other is a V neck cotton shirt, and they both have stripes on the inside of the collar that can only be seen when the shirt is on a hangar. Yes, this is an fairly unimportant question, but there must be some reason why they would waste time (and I would assume money) putting stripes on a shirt this way, and I must know!
posted by internal at 1:42 PM PST - 13 comments

A question, delivered by proxy: Why isn't there a computer on the desk in the Oval Office? (This isn't W. bashing. We think he's cute, and none of the other US presidents had one either.)
posted by nobody at 1:36 PM PST - 25 comments

How do I find a European to marry? I am a well educated 35 year old woman. I want to move to Europe and become an EU citizen. The country doesn't matter.
posted by Stylistique at 1:23 PM PST - 29 comments

Plastic erasable notepad search:

Many years ago, I had an insert for my filofax that was a white card made of some kind of plastic, with spaces for contact details on one side. It could be written on with pencil and then erased, and it got grubby only very slowly. Filofax doesn't make this insert any more, and I would like to find (or make) something similar to keep with me as a permanent erasable notepad.

In fact, my fantasy is to get a few printed, with and without ruled lines, and also with various agenda/calendar formatting.

The plastic card was quite matt and very slightly scratchy to write on. Does anyone know how I might find this kind of plastic? What would it be called? Is there a product out there already? Does anyone already write and erase on something already that I could use as an alternative?
posted by suleikacasilda at 1:18 PM PST - 8 comments

can anyone recommend a building inspector for brooklyn. Just want a good honest guy that you've used before and was a good one.
posted by alkupe at 1:09 PM PST - 0 comments

Free-WYSIWYG-HTML-editor-Filter: what is the best one, if indeed there exists one worth using? (My search of AskMe gave me nothing on this...)
posted by noius at 11:58 AM PST - 14 comments

I'm collecting notes on Internet fame with the half-hearted goal of writing "How to be famous for 15 minutes or two years." But mostly I'm just curious. What are the most long-lasting legends of the Internet -- real specimens such as Time Cube rather than quick jokes, one-liners, virals or urban legends. G*atse would barely pass because it's so prevalent, but "All Your B*se" wouldn't make it.
posted by NickDouglas at 11:21 AM PST - 22 comments

Tattoos: I'm interested in tattoos that seek to represent a concept, a relationship or a person. Do you have one? How did you come up with it? I'd like to hear descriptions of the image and what it means. (I'd ideally exclude concepts written out as words/kanji. Also not really applicable: more commonly-seen representations of persons/self such as zodiac signs and tattoos from portraits that literally depict a particular person.)
posted by xo at 11:08 AM PST - 33 comments

I'm baffled by the American colloquial expression Later and its many usages. Can someone pin it down for me? [More inside.] [more inside]
posted by MiguelCardoso at 10:50 AM PST - 31 comments

Not-Lame Country Music: I understand that some Alice in Chains, Nirvana, etc. , songs have a strong "country" flavor, deep guitars, slow vocals, tons of mood, while still rocking. I know nothing about country music, and most of what I've heard doesn't do it for me. What dark, slow and moody Country music would you recommend?
posted by signal at 10:41 AM PST - 60 comments

ProductFilter: I'd like a phone with a digital answering machine that can be set to be absolutely silent by default, but which will ring if the caller enters a numeric password. [more inside]
posted by Zed_Lopez at 10:38 AM PST - 9 comments

While digitizing some minidiscs before I throw them out, I was very surprised to find this electronic instrumental (100KB MP3) on a disc of Avril Lavigne etc, and I have no idea how it got there. What is it? [more inside]
posted by cillit bang at 10:32 AM PST - 9 comments

What type of gun do you keep for home defense purposes? [more inside]
posted by knave at 10:11 AM PST - 52 comments

I have an iBook whose audio jack has been accidentally jammed inwards. The jack still works, but the internal sound won't play -- because now it always thinks headphones are on. Is there a software workaround, or a remedy using tweezers? [more inside]
posted by inksyndicate at 9:06 AM PST - 5 comments

HardwareFilter: I recently moved into a new apartment and would like to hang shelves, pictures and paintings. Unfortunately the walls are all stone (cinder block w/ a small bit of plaster on top). How can I hang these things without putting tons of holes in this rock?
posted by OpinioNate at 9:00 AM PST - 17 comments

Yesterday my Outlook Express program would not launch, instead I received an error message. Today it seems to be working fine, except that all the mail in my inbox disappeared, including a gift certificate to Amazon.com. Any ideas?
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 8:58 AM PST - 10 comments

Is an ADSL broadband (thru-router) internet set-up vulnerable to 'dialler' viruses?
posted by the cuban at 8:30 AM PST - 3 comments

Does anyone know what's the maximum number of addressees to whom one can send an e-mail using Outlook Express? (+) [more inside]
posted by Kat Allison at 8:28 AM PST - 3 comments

FireFox and CSS: I'm having difficulty getting my style sheets to behave the same way on different computers running the same browser. MI [more inside]
posted by spicynuts at 7:32 AM PST - 21 comments

Absinthe in Paris? (+) [more inside]
posted by Gortuk at 7:29 AM PST - 13 comments

Southwest Ireland (Tralee, Co. Kerry) this May. With a toddler and a 73 year old in tow. We'd like to find a cottage to rent and stuff to do. Also, basic logistics and any other travel tips would be appreciated. Can anyone help? [MI] [more inside]
posted by bondcliff at 7:27 AM PST - 7 comments

Is it possible to take advantage of special cell-phone promotions through Amazon.com when renewing your contract (as an existing member)? [mi]
posted by mhaw at 7:01 AM PST - 5 comments

I have 3 computers, each with sound cards. I have one set of speakers. What can I use to smash 3 sound cards together to go into the speakers so I don't have to swap cables? I'd like to hear all 3 at once. (more inside) [more inside]
posted by cmm at 6:51 AM PST - 12 comments

So, I bought my friend Tom a G3 PowerMac on eBay, which turned up, then booted to a blank screen. After a reboot, it started up, then the power supply went flash, bang and off. I've since connected my PC's power supply to the G3, tried the PRAM battery from my G5, and no luck. When the power button is pressed, the fans in the PSU twitch, and the lights on the motherboard come on, but then go out straight away. Is this a power supply compatiblity thing, or is the logic board fried?
posted by armoured-ant at 4:05 AM PST - 10 comments

Other than the advantage of never having to adjust the source volume, what's the advantage of outputting audio through the line out vs. headphone out? [...] [more inside]
posted by sammich at 7:43 PM PST - 10 comments

I want to take a food product with a paste-like consistancy and put it in a tube. Is there any way to do this from home, on a small to medium scale? [more inside]
posted by puke & cry at 7:28 PM PST - 17 comments

I have had a gigantic crush on this product ever since my friend got one. Small (big!) problem though- the software for this specific GPS watch only runs on PC, and I have a PowerBook! (+) [more inside]
posted by BuddhaInABucket at 5:43 PM PST - 11 comments

This may be old hat, but does anyone know why Firefox (any version) chokes on Flash? It bogs down on both Mac and PC and generally runs terribly whenever anything Flash-related is on the webpage. Also, can anything be done to fix the problem that doesn't involve blocking the flash movies/animation?
posted by riffraff at 5:43 PM PST - 11 comments

So I would like to start a test prep mini-business in an area vastly underserved by test prep companies. Is my idea feasible? [+] [more inside]
posted by u.n. owen at 5:29 PM PST - 15 comments

Why does eating in a restaurant make me crap my pants?

I have a generally healthy, varied diet. I can eat anything prepared at home, regardless of how rich, fatty, or spicy it is. But nearly everything from restaurants causes massive stomach upset. I have an intense need to go to the bathroom within 20 or 30 minutes of eating restaurant food - sometimes it's diarrhea, sometimes not.

I can eat junk food, fast food - even Taco Bell - without problems, which adds to my confusion about the cause. I thought it might be MSG, but the local Chinese restaurant is one of the few places I can eat, and they do use MSG. Is there one particular food additive that I'm not aware of that might be doing this? Any other ideas?
posted by anonymous at 5:01 PM PST - 52 comments

StudyBingeFilter: let's suppose I had one week to teach myself banking, specifically: asset/liability management, market risk management, credit risk, funds transfer pricing/profitability, mortgage servicing valuation and accounting. anyone recommend some books/study materials/etc.? [more inside]
posted by mdpc98 at 4:20 PM PST - 8 comments

So I met Alton Brown last night at a book signing here in Tampa, and was pleasantly surprised to find that he is even more likable in person than he is on TV or through his weblog. What I'm interested in learning now is which celebrities you've met/run into/bruised with your front bumper, and whether they lived up to or belied their 'image,' whatever it may be. Cont'd inside. [more inside]
posted by alas at 4:04 PM PST - 127 comments

I'm coming over to the US for a week in early April. I'm looking for cheap, good quality & reasonably accessible hotels in both New York and Austin, Texas. How much should I be looking to spend? Any recommendations? [more inside]
posted by seanyboy at 2:59 PM PST - 20 comments

Cocktailfilter. I like the salty ones, which means either Bloody Mary, preferably substituting the vodka with sherry; or the magnificent Bullshot. What else is there?
posted by magullo at 2:59 PM PST - 13 comments

If you're "of a certain age," you probably remember that "Bo knows football." And he knew a lot of other stuff, too. But I'm not really interested in all that. What I am interested in is that Bo also knew typing. You know?
posted by *burp* at 2:46 PM PST - 10 comments

I have been reading Gabriel Garcia Marquez's autobiography, "Living to Tell the Tale". In one passage he describes a bookcase full of books that one should read in order to live without regret. What are some of the books that have helped you live without regret?
posted by omphale27 at 2:36 PM PST - 27 comments

re: Firefox ... lately, I've been having weird DNS issues. I don't recall it ever happened before I switched to firefox, so I assume it's to blame, though that may be a red herring. What happens is this : I have several pages listed in my homepage setting, with each url separated by a '|'. 12 of em to be exact. More than occasionally, anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 of them come up with a "server cannot be found" error. Sometimes, if I wait for all of the tabs to open, and then try to load the previously not found page, it'll open successfully. Other times, it just doesn't come up no matter how or when I refresh. I've tried resetting my nameserver settings on my router -- both hard-coded nameserver spec. and 'get nameserver information from isp,' but the problem persists.
posted by crunchland at 1:53 PM PST - 5 comments

Are there any dangerous effects to long-term heavy robotussin use? [MI] [more inside]
posted by jennyjenny at 1:49 PM PST - 23 comments

Does anyone have any information on what it takes to obtain an import or export license for international trade into the U.S.?
posted by Gooney at 1:11 PM PST - 7 comments

What is in your magazine rack? |Mi| [more inside]
posted by jazzkat11 at 12:23 PM PST - 67 comments

How does someone obtain 'U. S. Government Security Clearance'? I just got laid off and am searching for jobs online again and noticed this on the big sites like Hotjobs, Monster and Dice and it made me curious.
posted by ao4047 at 11:11 AM PST - 22 comments

VOIP FollowupFilter Thanks all who answered my VOIP intro questions here about two weeks ago. Now, a followupQ [+] [more inside]
posted by ParisParamus at 9:28 AM PST - 7 comments

Why do I have so many referrer entries for www.example.com in the web stats for my site? [more inside]
posted by fletchmuy at 9:03 AM PST - 9 comments

Does anyone know where the editors and reviewers of science educational resources hang out online (listservs, discussion sites, etc.)? I'm working with some people at an educational digital library, who want to develop an editor/reviewer system to cover accessioning resources, and would like to get up to speed with some of the perennial and also current issues. Thanks!
posted by carter at 9:01 AM PST - 5 comments

The math threads got me thinking; maybe someone can help my students? [+] [more inside]
posted by glibhamdreck at 9:01 AM PST - 44 comments

We've just had an extensive discussion of good cover songs, so it's time to ask the opposite question: what covers should be avoided at all costs? [+]
posted by SisterHavana at 8:28 AM PST - 81 comments

A family member is considering starting a small business exporting goods (primarily seafood) to Japan. I would like to help but have no clue how to begin. [MI] [more inside]
posted by jeffmshaw at 8:26 AM PST - 5 comments

Ok, so I have a php script that updates a txt file on my server with data pulled from an rss feed on Scrobbler. I have it set to refresh the feed when a user accesses a page on my site, and the local txt file is stale. There's (obviously) a noticeable lag accessing this page when the feed is being refreshed. My question: Is there a way to call the refresh script such that it would be its own process, independent of my pagebuilding script.
posted by crumbly at 8:20 AM PST - 6 comments

Newspaper fair use. My children, in a story about their school, were recently featured (extensive quotes, several photos) on the front page of a large newspaper. To preserve this and prevent it from vanishing into the depths of their pay only archives I have mirrored the relevant page. I expect that this isn't entirely legal and was wondering how much of the article (if any) I can make available and stay within the 'fair use' guidelines?
posted by cedar at 7:34 AM PST - 12 comments

MuseumGeeksinDCFilter: Looking for offbeat, trivia-intensive experiences in Washington, DC for a group of maritime history museum geeks. Special Exhibit inside. [more inside]
posted by Miko at 6:57 AM PST - 9 comments

Name that artist: He's Japanese or Japanese-American, judging from his name. He paints (or painted?) busy 1920s-ish city street scenes, full of old cars and people in the dress of the day, generally very small and dwarfed by the (New York?) buildings around them ... Perspective was usually from far away, perhaps in the sky. Charming paintings, very detailed, with humor and often an almost cartoon sensibility. I seem to remember sometimes many umbrellas ... [more inside]
posted by Shane at 5:06 AM PST - 8 comments

Is there any way to bookmark or flag a particular point in a video file (avi specifically, but any other format is good) and then to be able to have the video start at that point automatically when opened?
posted by humuhumu at 4:47 AM PST - 5 comments

Can anyone recommend any good free games to play over a Windows LAN?
posted by nthdegx at 3:41 AM PST - 10 comments

Can you help me buy a DVD from Germany? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by Gamecat at 2:22 AM PST - 6 comments

Why is it so impossible to find copies of M. Night Shyamalan's first movie, "Praying with Anger" anywhere on the web, even Ebay? (mi+) [more inside]
posted by invisible ink at 1:07 AM PST - 3 comments

Is it considered misogynous to use "the C-word" ? It had never even occured to me that it might be until my sister asked that I never use it as it was "so anti-women." At the right moment, it's SUCH a useful word, but I don't want to appear to be "anti-women", since I'm not . Is my sister's view unusual?
posted by bunglin jones at 9:43 PM PST - 112 comments

I need my Kingdom of Loathing! (DNS/Connection Issues Inside) [more inside]
posted by amandaudoff at 8:20 PM PST - 5 comments

HomeImprovementFilter: We are about to start the finishing work on an addition, and we're trying to decide what type of flooring to buy:Laminate, or pre-finished hardwood? We've looked at both, and I think I like pre-finished hardwood better, but I wanted some real-life commentary, rather than my speculation. Any laminate horror stories? Successes? Pre-finished camp have anything to add?
posted by Medieval Maven at 8:00 PM PST - 28 comments

Haydn wrote "Mass in Time of War" as Napoleon was advancing on Vienna; Shostakovich wrote his seventh symphony during the siege of Leningrad. I'm looking for other pieces/songs written by musicians living under conditions of war - under siege, in the thick of battle, or in similar dire straits. [more inside]
posted by mediareport at 7:32 PM PST - 24 comments

I've been trying since christmas to find a picture of a dissassembled Santa Pez Dispencer. If you ever had one, you may remember that you could take off the hat and beard to make a clean shaven Buddha-esque Santa. I assumed I'd be able to throw a stone and hit about ten pictures of this phenenon on Google image search, but I've been searching off and on for a while and havn't fond anything. Anyone know where I can find vistual proof of this without buying one online? (the new, solid-design is all I can find at local stores)
posted by es_de_bah at 7:19 PM PST - 3 comments

HardDriveRecoveryFilter: wondering if there's anything I can do to recover data after a system crash other than formatting or a data recovery service. [...] [more inside]
posted by chicobangs at 6:39 PM PST - 7 comments

I have one semester left in college (until the scholarship money runs out) and I would like to spend it abroad minoring in Spanish. As much as I love Spain, I would prefer to go somewhere more exotic and off the beaten path. I’m looking for adventure to accompany my education. I’ve only been to Mexico and Cuba and would like to get people’s perspectives and recommendations on other Latin American countries. If you were in my shoes, where would you go and why?
posted by TheGoldenOne at 6:35 PM PST - 12 comments

Cordless phones My cordless phones have terrible battery life. Plus if I hold one against my shoulder w/my chin, I often accidentally hang up. Does anyone have a cordless phone they love?
Requirements: Caller ID, clear sound.
Nice to have: 2+ handsets, volume control on the handset. [more inside]
posted by agropyron at 6:29 PM PST - 16 comments

Wifi sharing w/ a 'gateway' access page? {more inside} [more inside]
posted by prettyboyfloyd at 6:16 PM PST - 6 comments

I liked reading this article about Collegehumor.com and this article about Delicious Monster. Any suggestions for any other great articles on what successes young people are having these days with respect to the tech sector? I'd prefer current articles to Jobs / Gates era stuff.
posted by banished at 5:44 PM PST - 6 comments

Help set my feet on the road to math geekery [+]. [more inside]
posted by Ritchie at 5:43 PM PST - 23 comments

Shellfish Filter: So I've recently discovered that I love Oysters. I don't know much about them other than the ones I've had at Doc's and Pearl (NYC oyster bars) I loved. Can anyone recommend markets in NYC to buy them,what types are the best? Favorite recipes/cookbooks? I've just bought the one from Pearl.
posted by clubfoote at 5:24 PM PST - 21 comments

ChillFilter: At what temperature does vodka freeze? [more inside]
posted by pompomtom at 3:55 PM PST - 22 comments

Internet connection problem. Odd circumstances. Knowledgeable people are invited inside to tell me that I'm missing something obvious. [more inside]
posted by Mayor Curley at 3:37 PM PST - 10 comments

Where should me and my girlfriend go for our summer holiday? (Inside not being an option, as it is full of More) [more inside]
posted by Orange Goblin at 3:04 PM PST - 14 comments

Due to "security concerns," my web host provider has just banned two Form-to-email scripts (Formmail and NMS Formmail). Now I'm hard up to find a replacement. Any ideas? I'd prefer a solution that doesn't require a mastery of PERL to configure.
posted by Pinwheel at 2:54 PM PST - 4 comments

Is there such a thing as an Agent or Manager for an artist? Something similar to that role in the music or acting industry. If so, under what woodwork would these people be located? [more inside]
posted by yoga at 2:08 PM PST - 7 comments

Say I need to demonstrate RSS on a computer that is not online. I create an xml file on my hard drive that contains the item 'headlines' and the urls they should lead to. I point firefox to that file as a 'live bookmark' and FeedReader to that file as a feed, but neither of them will show the headlines I created in the heading sidebar. Why not? How can I create my own 'feed' and demonstrate it without actually having that xml file on another computer?
posted by bingo at 2:07 PM PST - 6 comments

NerdFilter: So I'm part of an online gaming community/guild that runs some servers. We have a recruitment process that is a bit old, and we are starting to get rather large (50+).

What sort of recruitment process are you aware of for online communities? Any that you are particularly fond of?
posted by eurasian at 1:44 PM PST - 9 comments

Airbus will announce their new "flying cruise ship" (see pictures) this week and it will probably be beyond the cost for most people. But it made me think that we all ideally want to travel like that, but put up with crowded planes because they are fast and relatively cheap. Ships used to be the way to travel across the Atlantic, is it possible to travel by ship across the Atlantic without spending a lot of money? It seems the choices are high-end cruise ship, or low-brow freighter travel. Does an affordable, middle-market quick human transportation by ship service exist across the Atlantic?
posted by stbalbach at 12:51 PM PST - 21 comments

EMFilter- I have my old classroom-style record player set up next to my computer monitor, which is causing mild screen jitters. Moving them farther apart is not an option, and I don't want to buy any prefab stuff. Are there any homebrew tinfoil-type solutions?
posted by The White Hat at 12:27 PM PST - 4 comments

I'm looking for fresh examples from literature (short stories, poems, or parts of larger works) that involve characters who stick to a set of good principles and are admired, even though sticking to the principles may involve some sacrifice for everyone else. A good example would be Le Guin's "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas". I'm also looking for examples in which people stubbornly stand by good principles when they are clearly getting in the way of some greater good. [MI] [more inside]
posted by ontic at 11:11 AM PST - 29 comments

I'm looking for some good websites on copyright law and issues [MI] [more inside]
posted by thewittyname at 10:45 AM PST - 14 comments

Can someone please explain to me either what A Perfect Day for Bananafish is about, or why people like it? I really don't get it.
posted by Sibrax at 10:44 AM PST - 27 comments

Nina Gordon has just recorded a cover of Straight Outta Compton. It rules. Johnny Cash did One, Jeff Buckley did Hallelujah, The Gourds did Gin and Juice. Any other Better-Than-The-First-Time covers? [more inside]
posted by bonaldi at 10:01 AM PST - 200 comments

Acrobat woes. I have Acrobat 6 Pro, and it takes forever to load. How can I get Acrobat Reader 7 to open PDF in my browser, and save 6 for when I want to edit files? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by caution live frogs at 9:53 AM PST - 8 comments

Springfield Lemon Tree Filter: I have a Meyer lemon tree which was subjected to very cold temperatures last month. I was able to get it inside, but it spent almost a week outside, with temperatures in the low twenties (F). All of the leaves have dried up, and most have now fallen off. No new leaves have grown. I've had this tree for about six years, and it was a few years old when I purchased it. I'd very much like to save it.

It is in an extremely oversized pot, which I thought would help shield it from the cold, but apparently it wasn't enough. At the very least, I'd like to be able to save the roots, even if I have to graft another tree to the trunk. Any ideas?
posted by bh at 9:22 AM PST - 5 comments

I am going to a wedding in Zurich in May, and I would like to go to the beach to relax for a week before the wedding. Where are some good beach vacation locations where I can vacation cheaply, and still travel to Zurich for the wedding.
posted by bob bisquick at 9:01 AM PST - 6 comments

Is it possible to set up a television transmitter which could 'hijack' regular terrestrial channels? How difficult would it be? If possible, how much do you estimate such an enterprise would cost to set up?
posted by gravelshoes at 8:55 AM PST - 4 comments

Why has my Firefox slowed down? It started a few day ago. Sometimes it takes several minutes for a page to load. Some only partially load, then stop. Some don't load at all. Not every page is this way, but I'd say about 20% suffer from one of these problems. IE is zipping right along though. I did a virus check, ran Spy-bot and Ad-Aware and cleaned up my registry. Yet the problem persists. Oh, I'm running 1.0 and XP Pro.
posted by zorro astor at 8:49 AM PST - 8 comments

Aside from the recent blockbusters, I haven't watched an anime movie (or series) in years. Can anyone suggest a series or movie that that is either in sci-fi genre or has a storyline that deals with traditional Japanese culture?
posted by jasonspaceman at 8:13 AM PST - 33 comments

Plain old HTML: is there any way to get the contents of HTML file A into HTML file B without using frames, iframes, PHP or other server side stuff (it's for on a cd), and just copy-pasting the contents of one into the other? So something like an import function (perhaps done with javascript)? I need a page with a TOC + content and want to make it pretty, so frames are a no. [more inside]
posted by Skyanth at 8:08 AM PST - 13 comments

iPodFilter: Why can't you easily add the currently playing song to the On-The-Go list? From the Now Playing screen it should be possible to add the currently playing song directly to the On-The-Go playlist. It seems that I can only add songs to the On-The-Go list by surfing out to the songname in the current playlist and then holding Select on the songname to add it to the list. I would like to put my iPod on song shuffle and add songs as they randomly play. Impossible? [MI] [more inside]
posted by grabbingsand at 7:54 AM PST - 6 comments

My TV is broken. Within the last few days, it has gone from color to black and white. You can wiggle the s-video plug in the back to see color in spurts, and sometimes hitting it brings back color for a few minutes. Its not an old TV, maybe 5 years old, but it is a tube type. Is this even worth fixing? It's a big tv, so replacing it with one an equal size would be expensive. Is it something your average joe could open up and fix?
posted by quibx at 7:20 AM PST - 12 comments

ihaveadream.com is a sleazy search engine. mlk.com seems to be a German concert hall conglomerate. martinlutherking.com redirects to "clubpink.com" (er, I assume NSFW). thekingcenter.com cannot be found. Ah.... here it is. No, wait, that's all about his kinky sex parties and plagiarism.

Where's all the good stuff?
posted by Caviar at 7:20 AM PST - 14 comments

How long does it take for your teeth to fuse to the jaw and maxilla after having braces? I had braces some five years ago and wore a retainer. I sort of lapsed and have also recently restarted and was wondering what to expect. [mi] [more inside]
posted by Napierzaza at 7:13 AM PST - 10 comments

My father in law is one who can never pass up (in his mind anyway) a bargain. He likes to make bread so instead of buying the small packets of yeast, he buys the big, CostCo, industrial size bag of yeast. Once he opens that, how long until the efficiency of the yeast is diminished?
posted by ShawnString at 7:05 AM PST - 14 comments

When searching for something in the Gnutella network (i'm using acquisition on the mac), what are those files that get returned that are my exact search terms, but with a .jpg or .wmv on the end? I've never dared download one in case it's mr goatse or something
posted by derbs at 6:58 AM PST - 7 comments

I know deep down inside everyone has this dream, but only recently have I myself been seized with the need to DANCE LIKE JAMES BROWN. I seriously would like to attempt his moves: can anyone suggest good DVDs of his live performances for me to use for practice? The actual quality of his vocals & the music doesn't matter as much as his dancing, and anyway, even on his worst days he's a better dancer than us all. Links to good images of a sweaty dancin' James are welcome too...
posted by ibeji at 6:46 AM PST - 3 comments

Last year, a friend of mine went to Iceland where she spent a night bar-hopping with expat friends. While she was heading for the ladies' room, an Icelandic woman came up to her and proposed that they go together. My friend refused (she'd been hit on several times already and the atmosphere was rather hot) and later asked her friends about the incident: she was told that going to the lavatories in pairs was a local custom of Icelandic girls, but that she would have to accept the next proposal to find out what was actually going on down there. Of course, her friends may have just been pulling her leg, but she's still curious as she'll be back in Iceland this year... Any (girl, Icelandic) mefite with a clue to that mystery?
posted by elgilito at 5:24 AM PST - 11 comments

[RapidFireLyricsFilter] I love songs that are catchy, clever, witty, and possibly educational. But I love them even more if their lyrics clip along at such an alacritous speed that it takes many listenings and hours of practice to sing along, if indeed it's even possible. Any recommendations for great, high-SPM (syllables-per-minute) songs?
posted by Ironwolf at 3:18 AM PST - 52 comments

Gay Lincoln reviews tell me of an old notion of "jelly babies" - what black slaves apparently imagined as the product of gay sex. I'm intrigued but can find no in-depth discussion of this concept. Tell me more.
posted by fucker at 3:06 AM PST - 5 comments

Two unrelated questions. Extra points for the complex person that answers both.
1. How do I control where a tree I am cutting down will land?
2. I want a stationary mp3 player that fits on top of my stereo. Does anything like that exist - and who produces it?
posted by FidelDonson at 1:18 AM PST - 14 comments

I have some mastered audio data and a quicktime movie that I'd like to combine into a user-freindly mixed-mode master disc for duplication. More inside... [more inside]
posted by adamkempa at 10:53 PM PST - 5 comments

I have a white wood desk I built that I put a piece of glass on top of (easy cleaning, really a work desk). It is rather boring and I'd like to possibly put one of those giant posters (or any poster really) underneath the glass, but make it look somewhat nice by "pasting it on". I have no clue what I'm doing. I believe the process is similar to wood mounting if what I've read about wood mounting is correct. I know nowhere to even start on this but was hoping it could be done simply for some instant pop-art. More inside. [more inside]
posted by geoff. at 10:30 PM PST - 6 comments

More NYC real estate: I am in the early stages of finding a building to purchase in NYC. Besides Foxtons, can anyone serve up some nice resources, online or otherwise? [more indoors+] [more inside]
posted by Jack Karaoke at 10:08 PM PST - 7 comments

My cell phone broke the other day, and I've been looking at getting a new one off Ebay, since it seems like you can get really cheap phones compared to buying them from Sprint directly. Is there anything I should know, or any potential hurdles that'd I have to jump over if I did this? Has anyone bought a phone off ebay and transferred it on to their preexisting business account? [more inside]
posted by SweetJesus at 8:30 PM PST - 9 comments

In movies and on TV, why does a phone go to dial tone after someone hangs up? Is there a phone system somewhere that really does that?
posted by stopgap at 8:20 PM PST - 22 comments

[SlashdotMemeFilter] What is the link between Natalie Portman and hot grits? I know it started on Slashdot, and I realize the obsession with Natalie Portman is a result of the more recent Star Wars films, but I have never been able to find what she has to do with hot grits. How did this meme get started? P.S. Google's got nothing and my questions to Ask Slashdot got bounced.
posted by furtive at 7:01 PM PST - 8 comments

Taxfilter: telecommuting across state lines. [mi] [more inside]
posted by 445supermag at 6:44 PM PST - 3 comments

Why does my TV (and most other's I've ever seen) do this? [more inside]
posted by Cosine at 6:16 PM PST - 14 comments

I am having a bit of trouble using RSS on Firefox. Whenever I click on one of the little orange RSS boxes, I am taken to a page which states, at the top, "This XML file does not appear to have any style information associated with it. The document tree is shown below." followed by a code listing that I presume is the document tree mentioned above. Am I supposed to do something with that?

I suspect there is a real simple answer to this that will make me look like a dork, but I can cope with that if it results in figuring this out.
posted by John Smallberries at 6:03 PM PST - 10 comments

[PCHardwareFilter] Inspired by the recent MacMini, I've been looking at Small Form Factor (SFF) PCs. (This isn't a question about the mac, I use a powerbook, but run an IT Division). What companies make SFF PCs that are good, reliable, and suprisingly decent little beasts. I'd love to hear reviews and accolades. I know of Shuttle... What else is there?
posted by warhol at 5:43 PM PST - 11 comments

DoesThisExistFilter: I’m looking for something to keep my electronic gear cool in the car this summer. More inside. [more inside]
posted by baltimore at 5:19 PM PST - 5 comments

I have a laptop I love; however, the letters on the keyboard are wearing off. It's not a huge problem for me right now, but whenever anyone else uses it (my spouse, my daughter), it's really frustrating for them to figure out where those missing letters are -- and I could see that down the road it could be a pain for me as well. Is there a safe way I could, say, paint the letters back on? Do I have to buy a new keyboard? Individual letter keys?
posted by mothershock at 5:17 PM PST - 13 comments

What is pushing bedroom design from tall beds, box springs and mattress, to the 4 inches off the floor platform beds? Is it cost, maybe style that moves from space conscious Tokyo/New York, or an architect's fad? Something else?
posted by orange clock at 4:47 PM PST - 17 comments

physicsfilter: This is moderately involved, so bear with me. Let's say there are two spaceships which are situated on two planets, and the planets are about one light hour away from each other, just for the sake of argument. These ships depart from their planets, both heading for a common point between the planets. The ships both accelerate to an appreciable fraction of the speed of light above half, e.g. 3/4 or 4/5 or something. My question is, couldn't it seem then that one was traveling faster than the speed of light and one standing still? I suspect this can't be so, but I don't know why.
posted by clockzero at 4:11 PM PST - 22 comments

I'm looking to expand my knowledge of pre-television radio serials. What are some of your favorites?
posted by pxe2000 at 3:57 PM PST - 14 comments

I have a painted metal thermometer that used to hang on my grandparents' porch. It's very old (fifty years?), and very rusty, but I love it. It's so rusty that the advertising ("Whiskey Hill Grocery") and the temperature gradations are barely discernible. How can I remove this oxydation without damaging the paint underneath, restore the piece to something approximating its original condition? Is this even possible?
posted by jdroth at 3:56 PM PST - 3 comments

802.11g cards that work well in Linux. What has worked for you (and under what kernel)? Is there any advantage in getting a card with a native driver instead of using ndiswrapper? Do they speak successfully to both G and B access points? Even better if the card is available in both PCMCIA and PCI.
posted by mendel at 3:48 PM PST - 6 comments

My father, though a very iintelligent and respected lawyer, says he often has trouble accepting the idea of macro-evolution, because he says to him the idea is too vast to take in. Can anyone suggest some books on the topic that can explain evolution better than my feeble attempts?
posted by Sangermaine at 2:12 PM PST - 22 comments

[OutOfOfficeParanoiaFilter] I am planning a holiday soon and, over a conversation, a friend gave me a cautionary note about not leaving an out of office autoreply on my mail account as it greatly increased the chance of me being burgled. [+] [more inside]
posted by TheDonF at 2:07 PM PST - 14 comments

I am running a free Web-based service for friends and acquaintances. Lately, the volume on this service has been growing greatly. The next step is to move the service to a professional host. I am thinking of putting a paypal donation button on the site to help pay for it. Are there any legal or tax issues I need to worry about? Do I need a business license? What if I want to start selling Cafe Press items or running Google ads? I am located in the USA.
posted by Orkboi at 1:14 PM PST - 5 comments

I need a new backpack. (My current one hurts my back and is covered in cat hair.) My new backpack goals are: (1) it should hold my computer comfortably (Powerbook G4), but (2) I don't want the boxy rectangular ones they sell at the Apple store; (3) I want something smart and sexy (perhaps in yellow?). Is this too much to ask? I'd also (4) like to be able to buy it online.
posted by adrober at 1:07 PM PST - 16 comments

Anyone know the name of that sort of upmarket brand of clothing that uses the Scottish lion as it's emblem/logo?
posted by Mean Mr. Bucket at 1:00 PM PST - 7 comments

Do you have a system for setting goals and tracking their completion? How does it work? Have you accomplished more than you would have without it? Significantly more?
posted by tirade at 12:58 PM PST - 9 comments

Furniturefilter: I'm looking for a set of full size bed rails. [more inside]
posted by getupandgo at 12:56 PM PST - 5 comments

DatingFilter: I'll kiss on the first date (hell, make out on the first date if it's going well). I'm pretty outgoing in general, and I don't think anybody would ever suspect I'm a Virgin and plan to be one until marriage. When do I tell? Is it weird that I feel bad kissing a guy on the first date and not telling him (point blank: Am I leading him on)? Help me out, please.
posted by anonymous at 11:09 AM PST - 57 comments

My aunt just sent me an e-mail linking to a site she set up for "Fortune Hi-Tech Marketing". Before I even brought the home page up, it felt quite a bit like Herbalife and other pyramid schemes just from reading the e-mail. Indeed, one of the first links on Google is a scam.com message board. To save me having to sort through thousands of Fortune Marketing pages on google, does anyone have any personal experience with this company or any information my aunt should be aware of? [more inside]
posted by Eideteker at 10:36 AM PST - 2 comments

Where I can I find a good all-purpose craft store in Manhattan or Brooklyn? Seems like there would be an abundance, but I can't find anything. I'm thinking something like AC Moore, but their closest location is Jersey.

Help!
posted by paulrockNJ at 9:48 AM PST - 10 comments

SexFilter: that nutty scene in Peter Hoeg's Smilla's Sense of Snow. [MI, NSFW] [more inside]
posted by ikkyu2 at 9:03 AM PST - 10 comments

PoliticalTheoryFilter: Given that all forms of government are eventually unsustainable or only last a certain time for whatever reason, does spreading Democracy to places that never had it actually hasten its decline? (tiny bit more inside) [more inside]
posted by amberglow at 8:44 AM PST - 31 comments

I want to buy a good camera-phone that is compatable with Verizon Wireless. Any suggestions?
posted by punkrockrat at 7:36 AM PST - 6 comments

CustomsQuestion: I've moved from the UK to Spain, but some of my stuff is still in England. It looks like the easiest/cheapest way to get some of that stuff is to send it to me using a carrier like DHL. One of these items is worth £1,400. Will Spanish customs try and charge IVA (Spanish sales tax on it) as if it was an eBay purchase, or similar, even though I already own it and have paid VAT (UK sales tax) when I bought it. I have documentation.
posted by benzo8 at 7:09 AM PST - 8 comments

In the back of a booklet of Cheapass Games, they talk about how Monopoly can be envisioned as a game with land mines. Every time you damage someone, the life points they lose are added to yours. Building a minefield hurts you, but once you've built it, it will damage other players whenever they land on the space, etc, etc. Then they proceed to describe a pirate game, which is actually another game that they do not name. I'm going crazy trying to identify this mystery game. [come inside, won't you?] [more inside]
posted by hindmost at 1:42 AM PST - 10 comments

Does anyone know the make and model of the green(ish) two-door car driven by Shelley Duvall's uncle in the Robert Altman film Nashville? I just watched the film again and that car was stuck in my mind the entire time. Do you happen to know this particular vehicle from within a film full of great looking cars?
posted by trivirgata at 11:37 PM PST - 9 comments

Does anyone here self-administer subcutaneous shots? I have to do four a week of Enbrel, for psoriasis, and I find it most comfortable to do them again and again in the same spot (my belly). Should I move the point of injection around? When I try my thigh, I hit a vein, and bruise. Am I building up scar tissue by using the same spot? Does it matter much if I do? And does it matter much if I hit a vein in my thigh when I try there?
posted by goofyfoot at 8:42 PM PST - 14 comments

Hope I'm not opening a can of worms here. I'm jumping into the Linux ring for the very first time. There are a ton of distributions and I was wondering if there were any that the community would recommend for a noob like myself. So far, I've downloaded Mandrake and RedHat images but there are a ton of other out there and I wonder if I'm missing something better? I'll be dual booting on a WinXP pro box (Intel) so I'm looking for something that is relatively easy to install in this situation.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 7:50 PM PST - 30 comments

After twenty years of twice-weekly migraines, Topamax has halted them completely for me; nary even a minor headache in three months. People with narcolepsy (and others with less severe sleep issues) have found a wonder drug in Provigil. Severe snorers, suffering from sleep apnea, arise from sleep studies on CPAP wondering what this strange "awake" feeling is. Cataracts disappear and vision returns. And then there's that other drug, so beloved by spammers.

What happens when a medical treatment truly changes your life? How does your life change when you've grown used to a condition over the span of years, and then in a matter of days it lifts? Any stories?
posted by dmd at 6:50 PM PST - 22 comments

I am in search of a good sealer for a wood carving that was done with very porous wood. Before it is waxed I want to seal it. It is hard to find a good site for wood sculptor's
posted by lag at 6:33 PM PST - 5 comments

Can you recycle Teflon/nonstick coated cookware? We've just gotten a whole new set of high-quality stainless and we'd like to get rid of our old nonstick stuff, but don't know if it's actually recyclable. What with all the hubbub lately about Teflon doing nasty nasty things, I'd hate to just put it in the trash and have it kill somebody later on.
posted by 40 Watt at 3:28 PM PST - 10 comments

FirefoxFilter: My Firefox freezes continually. Any remedies/notions on where I could download 0.9? [MI] [more inside]
posted by Count Ziggurat at 3:04 PM PST - 12 comments

How did the Special-Use IPv4 Addresses get to be that way? In the relevant IRCs it says what the special address ranges are, but I can't find anywhere how, say, 192.168.0.0/16 ended up reserved for private networks. Were there just a bunch of nerds sitting around one day who were like, "193...no, no, that's no good. How about 192?"
posted by jeb at 2:51 PM PST - 18 comments

How to make professional videos for a software company on a budget...(more inside) [more inside]
posted by pandaharma at 2:39 PM PST - 8 comments

[CarTalkFilter] '94 Buick with electronic heat & a/c controls. External temperature reads 94 degrees F (it's currently around 10 above). What do I check out to fix this? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by AstroGuy at 2:06 PM PST - 3 comments

Moving from the US to Brazil- what to bring and how to send it! [more, natch] [more inside]
posted by wallaby at 1:52 PM PST - 7 comments

I'm have a fairly small frame (5'7", 123 pounds). Should I assume that this excludes me from consideration by 90% of women out there (even ones smaller than me), or am I overestimating the importance of this aspect of my appearance?
posted by ldandersen at 1:46 PM PST - 66 comments

Can anyone help me find out more about my set of (what I assume to be) Oriental printing blocks? I know this is quite a long shot, but my Google-fu has failed me... [+] [more inside]
posted by corvine at 12:51 PM PST - 17 comments

Getting a message to a sysadmin staff currently in hell? [MI] [more inside]
posted by eriko at 11:42 AM PST - 15 comments

In science, what is the difference between a theory and a law? Why is something called a law rather than a theory?
posted by furiousxgeorge at 10:59 AM PST - 18 comments

I've just purchased my very first new car. However, in the process, I visited nine dealerships - 7 of them asked me for a cash deposit before they would even discuss prices with me. The one dealership that I gave a $500CDN deposit to (I later changed my mind on it) took almost 2 hours to refund my deposit. What are my rights, and what are strategies to get around this deposit requirement?
posted by burhan at 8:49 AM PST - 39 comments

Commuting: assuming that I can't move closer to work in the immediate future, and can't afford a luxury sedan, what are some things I can do to make my daily 2-hour (roundtrip) commute through mostly moderate traffic less draining, more bearable?
posted by mecran01 at 8:39 AM PST - 30 comments

Japanese art question: Looking for a ukiyo-e print by Kotozuka Eiichi (????) titled "Former Imperial Palace in Kyoto" and printed by the "Uchida Woodblock Printing Co. Ltd." (More inside) [more inside]
posted by shirobara at 8:02 AM PST - 5 comments

Up until the late 80's, while shopping at a large department store, you'd often hear a series of chimes in different patterns. These chimes weren't related to the time, nor were they the door alarms you hear in stores these days. What was the purpose of these chimes?
posted by eschatfische at 7:54 AM PST - 8 comments

In the past few days, I've discovered the Adagio from Rachmaninov's 2nd Piano Concerto. Which other themes are beautiful & memorable, from all music?
posted by Gyan at 7:27 AM PST - 33 comments

Zingerman's in Ann Arbor can no longer import garum colatura from Naples (garum colatura is the oil drained off barrels of cured anchovies -- it's great on pasta and in salads). Are there any other US importers of the stuff?
posted by tidecat at 5:35 AM PST - 11 comments

MySQL hot backup: I need to set one up.
One of my clients has started to get worried about their data in their MySQL database, which they have become very dependent on. The database is currently backed up twice daily, once at noon and once at end of business, and the backups are encrypted and stored offsite. However, they want to have a up-to-the-minute backup in case things go very pear shaped with the server. What's the best way to do this? (Note: MySQL 3.23.x)
posted by SpecialK at 1:29 AM PST - 12 comments

Language/Listening/WordFilter [mi] [more inside]
posted by zelphi at 12:43 AM PST - 14 comments

I have a boatload of 35mm and ASP photos that I'd like to digitize. The options I've found are either expensive or insanely tedious... [M.I.] [more inside]
posted by Tubes at 11:46 PM PST - 13 comments

Is the new iMac Mini comparable in performance to the old G4 Quicksilver? Rather, are there any grievous issues as to why one should not consider purchasing an iMac Mini?
posted by Colloquial Collision at 8:46 PM PST - 32 comments

PlayStation 2 DoohickeyFilter: I bought the new-model slimline PS2, and am confused by part of the AC adaptor. [mi] [more inside]
posted by Faint of Butt at 7:44 PM PST - 9 comments

Having had any chance of a steady internet connection from home lost for the time being, is there a kind of 2005-style offline reader software available that can download mail to a single file on a usb key, to load up and reply to at home outside of the time and money limits of a dingy internet cafe? [more inside]
posted by syscom at 6:26 PM PST - 4 comments

I recently had a major epiphany. The kind that has resulted in a rather radical shift in how I live and the choices I make each day: "You don't own the stuff-- the stuff owns you." Sure, you might think it facile or cliche, but since this new framework suddenly, deeply and firmly established itself in my noggin, I have stopped buying stuff all the time (like I used to) and I have been relentlessly getting rid of all the crap I had accumulated over 15 years. My question is what major epiphany have you had most recently and how has it changed your life?
posted by wtfwjd? at 6:25 PM PST - 57 comments

My iPod is full. I used to encode MP3s at 128k, more recently VBR at 80%. Can AAC give me quality around the latter with a file size smaller than the former?
posted by krisjohn at 6:05 PM PST - 8 comments

DonaterFilter: Tsunami fundraiser question. [+] [more inside]
posted by jimmythefish at 5:59 PM PST - 4 comments

Need help on cheap travel to and accomodations in Toronto. [inside, more] [more inside]
posted by armage at 5:15 PM PST - 16 comments

I'm looking for a natural alternative to dryer sheets. Does anyone have experience with this? [+] [more inside]
posted by vorfeed at 4:18 PM PST - 26 comments

DatabaseFilter: I've been given the task of converting a flat file into a more "grown-up" format. Trouble is, the data in each column differs wildly from record to record (ie: dates have been entered in a zillion different ways). Anyone know of any good data "massaging" tools and or practices?
posted by basicchannel at 3:07 PM PST - 17 comments

My WinXP system won't boot. Knoppix comes up fine, and complains that it can't read the partition table. I've got The Ultimate Boot CD; does anyone have a methodology for making things right, or at least recovering whatever I can from the hard drive?
posted by Daddio at 2:45 PM PST - 6 comments

While in St. Martin years ago, there were roadsigns that featured an exclmation point inside of a diamond shaped sign (?) or triangle (?). I often saw it on backroads and areas where there seemed to be no reason for concern. What does this sign mean, what is it called and where can I find images of it?
posted by Heatwole at 2:37 PM PST - 9 comments

Mail Order Cheesecake? My girlfriend really likes pumpkin cognac cheesecake. Unfortunately, the store that sells it here is going out of business. I'm a horrible baker and I can't find much on Google. Is there a baker (preferably online) that would mail delicious cheesecake to Tulsa, OK?
posted by theFlyingSquirrel at 2:34 PM PST - 13 comments

I got a new computer. What do I do with my old one? [more inside]
posted by MrMoonPie at 2:01 PM PST - 19 comments

Multi-unit property, single utility meter. Unit size/occupancy varies widely, and so does the monthly bill. What's a fair (to both parties) way to bill tenants for utilities since their actual usage cannot be determined?
posted by nakedcodemonkey at 1:05 PM PST - 19 comments

GPS units for PDAs [+] [more inside]
posted by skwm at 1:02 PM PST - 3 comments

Are there any online DVD rental sites with 1) per-rental pricing and 2) good selection, particularly of television shows on DVD? [+] [more inside]
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 12:33 PM PST - 8 comments

Damn you chicken fajitas!
I bit my tongue really badly last night. [more]
posted by ssmith at 12:24 PM PST - 20 comments

My wife and I are starting to plan our 1 month+ trip to Europe for this upcoming summer and I was wondering if anybody could recommend a comfortable, compact, relatively inexpensive backpack. We are going to be packing pretty light, as we will only have one bag each, and it needs to be small enough for carry-on luggage.
posted by Hillman Cobs at 12:03 PM PST - 21 comments

I have a bony elbow. I know this because the left sleeve of all my dress shirts reliably get a hole in the same spot after a while, long before the rest of the shirt shows appreciable wear and tear. Is there anything I can do about this? I've thought about the possibility of elbow pads sewn inside the sleeve, but I don't want stitching visible and anything substantial enough to prevent the tear seems impractical.
posted by mkultra at 12:02 PM PST - 9 comments

So I've got a PDA. Now what? (more inside) [more inside]
posted by spock at 11:12 AM PST - 22 comments

Can anyone recommend a very good data recovery tool? After installing a new secondary HD, XP decided that my tertiary drive was corrupted and "fixed" it for me.
posted by geckoinpdx at 11:10 AM PST - 6 comments

I’d like to dress better. Clothing advice for a slim 20 year old male with a budget a bit smaller than the target audience of most fashion mags, please? And while we’re at it, how about some general clothing/grooming advice for the guys? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by rfordh at 10:44 AM PST - 64 comments

Code Coverage tools for JSP? Anybody know of any good ones? Would like to be able to evaluate the JSP code directly and not the java generated by the JSP engine.
posted by evilelf at 10:30 AM PST - 0 comments

Can anyone recommend interesting daytime places to hang out around Paddington, London? Could be as far as Bayswater or Little Venice... unusual shops, cafés, restaurants? Thanks!
posted by skylar at 10:19 AM PST - 3 comments

What is the origin of saying shocked twice to indicate emphasis (e.g., "I'm shocked, SHOCKED, that you would insinuate such a thing.")? Googling just brings up examples of it in speech and no origin.
posted by trey at 10:15 AM PST - 29 comments

What can/should you do for a co-worker in your department who only has a few weeks left to live, and is already at the hospital?

Even if you aren't particularly close, one has the feeling one should do something. But what?
posted by ShawnStruck at 10:00 AM PST - 15 comments

Feline asthma. Any experience? Possible misdiagnosis? (MI) [more inside]
posted by mireille at 9:41 AM PST - 12 comments

SubtitlesFilter: I'm an admirer of the films of Theo Angelopoulos, but his films have always been hard to get hold of. Recently, I managed to acquire a complete set of DVDs, having bought the things as soon as I saw them. The only problem is, they're subtitled in Japanese. I've tried searching for english subtitles on the internet, but to no avail. Short of learning to speak Greek or read Japanese, is there anything else I could do?
posted by Jongo at 9:40 AM PST - 2 comments

I'm having a problem with house flies. [mi] [more inside]
posted by FunkyHelix at 9:26 AM PST - 11 comments

BowlingFilter: Does anyone know how to best dismantle a bowling alley? [MI] [more inside]
posted by petebest at 9:25 AM PST - 16 comments

When installing software on Unix, why do you have to type "./configure" ? Most programs would work by just typing "configure"... why is this different?
posted by gsteff at 8:21 AM PST - 16 comments

I am looking for nice hotels in the DC metro area. My wife and I need a nice holiday, so I'd like something with some real charm to it, not some chain with the cheap sheets and horrible quilted comforters. Any recommendations? [more inside]
posted by Irontom at 8:10 AM PST - 13 comments

I'm trying to understand the OOP concept of an Interface. [More inside.] [more inside]
posted by grumblebee at 7:53 AM PST - 27 comments

I've lost my Microsoft Office install disk. Is it possible to transfer it from one Mac to another? If so, can I run both Macs on the same network without any troubles? (MORE INSIDE) [more inside]
posted by yankeefog at 7:44 AM PST - 6 comments

Based on yesterday's discussion about celebrities who give offense by their wardrobe choices and malfunctions, I am left wondering about the "apologies" that are issued. Since when is it an apology to say "Sorry if I offended anyone..." instead of "I apologize for causing offense..."? What would ettiquette demand? How should they issue their apologies? Does the "if" even mean they believe they did something wrong or is it a trick to make people drop the topic?
posted by onhazier at 7:19 AM PST - 19 comments

I have to write a site using ASP. Now the people I'm writing it for are pushing for ASP.NET

At the best of times, I'd be nervous about handing large amounts of HTML generation to the people who gave us Homeshite, but all the ASP.NET demos I can find are awful. Anyone got experience of the change?
posted by monkey closet at 6:04 AM PST - 12 comments

I need to find nasty fairy-tales. For an example, in the first Sleeping Beauty, the prince rapes her sleeping body and she wakes up when she gives birth to twins and one sucks the splinter out of her finger. Also, fairy-tales that go back to the original belief that elves and fairies were nasty creatures would be useful. Either the original nasty fairy-tales or new written ones would be good.
posted by stoneegg21 at 2:24 AM PST - 29 comments

I can't seem to get Firefox tabs to work in the way I want them to. (more inside) [more inside]
posted by ralawrence at 1:52 AM PST - 16 comments

Beyond renting videos, long walks on the beach, and hot pig sex... What are your favourite things to do on a date? I'd like some creative suggestions for fun, date-appropriate activities, especially ideas that are low-budget or free, and geared to the early stages when one (or two) hasn't quite gotten to the hot pig sex yet. Toronto-centric ideas will be most welcome, since that's where I am.
posted by orange swan at 1:51 AM PST - 31 comments

Font search! My favorite font for use with the putty SSH client on a Windows machine is fixedsys 9. I'd love to find a version of this font that I can use with Terminal on my Macs at home - but so far I've been unable to find one.

fixedsys.org supposedly had a version at one time, but what they've got available now looks horrible in Terminal (after adding it to the system w/Font Book). Any suggestions?
posted by mrbill at 11:03 PM PST - 8 comments

What are the best jobs for a new graduate with a BS/MS in biochemistry? Looking for $$$, creative input, least-evil corporations. [+] [more inside]
posted by rxrfrx at 9:18 PM PST - 11 comments

I have a 1994 Grand Cherokee with a 318 and NP249 transfer case that needs to be replaced as the chain is beginning to slip. I'm thinking about putting in an NP242 as a replacement. Does anyone know if this would be a direct swap, and if not, what is involved?
posted by c13 at 8:53 PM PST - 4 comments

How does "after hours" stock trading work? Is it something a small time stockholder can take advantage of, or only for the big wheels? [more inside]
posted by aladfar at 8:35 PM PST - 10 comments

I was just watching an episode of "Oliver's Twist" on the Food Network featuring female football players. Jamie Oliver was wearing a green short-sleeve jersey with "RD" on the sleeves, but the team logo on the front was pixelated. It read 'something" Tigers. What could be so offensive that Food Network Canada would need to pixilate? British Mefites? The Food Network wouldn't censor "Tamil Tigers", would it?
posted by gesamtkunstwerk at 7:25 PM PST - 17 comments

Cleanse, Fold, Emulate: If you found yourself needing to run Windows 95 and only Windows 95 to play an old game (neither WINE nor Win2k under VMWare work - it has to be Win95), would you run Win95 under bochs or VMWare? VMWare is certainly a lot more straightforward, but it looks like bochs might give you more control over the emulated machine.
posted by Captain_Tenille at 6:54 PM PST - 7 comments

WASTEfilter: I'm trying to set up a WASTE network with my buddy, and we can't seem to get it to work at all. I'm running the client on OS X, and he's using Windows. We've sent each other our keys, but we can't seem to get the two to communicate. I can't really find any good sources of info for WASTE on the Mac, does anyone know if it works?
posted by hughbot at 5:45 PM PST - 5 comments

Soldiers in Iraq receive Cultural Smart Cards [PDF] which, among other things, provide a series of "Do This" and "Don't Do This" behaviors designed to avoid cultural misunderstandings. Some of these are quite obvious (e.g., "Never offer a Muslim alcohol or pork," "Don't engage in religious discussions") others are less so (e.g., "Don't make the 'OK' or 'thumbs up' signs; they are considered obscene," "Don't praise an Iraqi's possessions too much. He may give them to you and expect something of value in return," "Try all food offered to you, even if in small portions"). What would a similar card look like for foreigners visiting the US? I'd think that it would include something about it being customary to tip, maybe something about personal space. What else?

[Bonus points if we can avoid turning the thread into an argument about politics or the war].
posted by i love cheese at 4:51 PM PST - 54 comments

Mediafilter: I'm looking for recommendations for good print/web magazines. Think Wired but with a wider scope and a broader audience. What magazines make you go 'aah...'?
posted by hifimofo at 4:37 PM PST - 15 comments

Interior Design Filter: My wife's small residential interior design company has just got a contract for a large (for her) commercial design job? Need advice (more inside). [more inside]
posted by Pressed Rat at 4:33 PM PST - 8 comments

How and why did tickling evolve?
posted by moooshy at 4:27 PM PST - 5 comments

Question on X11 support in OS X. [+] [more inside]
posted by George_Spiggott at 4:11 PM PST - 14 comments

Is there a plug-in or macro for Excel v.X or Excel 2004 for Macintosh that adds PivotChart (from Excel 2003 for Windows) functionality or compatibility?
posted by AlexReynolds at 4:03 PM PST - 2 comments

Any suggestions for free/cheap domain name and web hosting services for a non-profit org? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by DakotaPaul at 3:54 PM PST - 17 comments

I have exercised stock options and taken possession of a small number of shares. I have not sold anything, but am wondering how screwed I am, tax-wise. First, do I have to declare the value of the stock as "income" for the year that I acquired it? Second, if I should sell it, do I add the money I receive from that sale to my regular taxable income? Do I deduct the amount I paid in? Is the net difference subject to other taxes? Is this handle-able by an average person or do I need an accountant?
posted by scarabic at 3:49 PM PST - 6 comments

Teaching English as a Foreign Language question inside, sort of a follow-up to this post. [more inside]
posted by schoolgirl report at 2:54 PM PST - 5 comments

I've always been a fan of classic Bob Dylan. Recently, I picked up Time Out of Mind in a combo-pack of CDs that I bought; it's the first recent Dylan I've listened to, and I flat-out love it. Now I want more. [MI] [more inside]
posted by jammer at 2:41 PM PST - 22 comments

PersonalPronounFilter: What's the origin of the word "Your" in "Your Honor," "Your Majesty," and "Your Excellency" (among many others)? Why not "My Majesty" or "The Majesty?" Isn't the Queen supposed to be the source of my majesty? She sure as hell doesn't get any additional majesty from me.
posted by Saucy Intruder at 2:37 PM PST - 16 comments

I just got an iPod and have signed up for a free one-month trial of Audible.com. I get two free downloads. I'm planning to try one book and a monthly subscription to one radio show and am looking for recommendations. [MI] [more inside]
posted by sanitycheck at 2:32 PM PST - 17 comments

Why can't I ever see Quicktime using Firefox???
posted by protocool at 2:15 PM PST - 9 comments

Did anyone ever figure out what was behind the photos of various Bush administration appointees, with Bush in the background, out of focus, giving the exact same smirk in each one? I saw another one in a story a few days ago and could hardly believe my eyes.
posted by ism at 2:06 PM PST - 15 comments

I'm looking for a cookbook on grilling that has a decent coverage of grilled food from all parts of the world. Do you have any recommendations?
posted by madman at 1:59 PM PST - 2 comments

Have you ever seen Dallas from a DC 9 at night? Or at any time, really? I'm about to spend six+ weeks there and was hoping my fellow metafites familiar with the area might share their expertise. [more inside]
posted by herc at 1:44 PM PST - 20 comments

I just went to my corner credit union ATM and made a $15 withdrawal. The machine gave me $80. Reflexively, I went into the branch, and reported it. They were appreciative. Two people virtually raced over to the back of the machine to shut it down.

At the time, it was a no brainer. But I am wondering if, since the receipt I got indicated a $15 withdrawal, and the cameras usually focus and faces, what would the traceability of it have been? I wonder if Diebold might have been stuck with the mistake. . .Maybe my honesty could have been turned into a political act, if Diebold would have lost out on the money. . .
posted by Danf at 1:23 PM PST - 15 comments

Why are there so many banks called First National Bank of ____? Is it just a convention, or is there a purpose/history behind it?
(I checked here, but it doesn't give a very satisfactory answer.)
posted by me3dia at 1:19 PM PST - 7 comments

kwotefilta "...like an errant locomotive..." [more inside] [more inside]
posted by ac at 12:59 PM PST - 5 comments

Is there some scientific explanation for the human eye locking onto a focal point involuntarily? Example: Blankly staring out of a car window, my eyes always end up locking on to roadside trees or something and moving along with them. Or am I crazy?
posted by xmutex at 12:54 PM PST - 18 comments

VeryBigAirplaneFilter: I'm trying to ID two airplanes I saw a few years ago. (more) [more inside]
posted by cmyk at 11:54 AM PST - 16 comments

Another partially remembered childhood story question. Does anyone recall a short story with a female narrator that revolves around her using a silver pencil to write and thereby deal with a debilitating illness? I seem to also recall something about "blue roses", but I'm not sure if that's in the story or just mixed in with it in my memories. Thanks.
posted by tommasz at 11:14 AM PST - 10 comments

Can anyone identify what type of material this rock is made of? Its blue and purple and sort of sparkles, but that stuff is on a black material. Is it an odd piece of coal? Airplane goo? Dirty salt? I found it sitting in the middle of a parking lot near Boston... which seems like an odd place to find such a thing.
posted by jwells at 11:08 AM PST - 14 comments

Jobfilter. I am applying for a position for which I am qualified because of my education, but not my recent work experience. A few years ago I did volunteer work that is almost identical to what I would be doing in the position I am applying for. Is it acceptable to include the general letter of reference I have from the volunteer work with my application and resume, even though no letter of reference is required or mentioned in the ad? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by Sheppagus at 10:51 AM PST - 10 comments

Using a US bought Apple Powerbook in the UK (MI+) [more inside]
posted by cantthinkofone at 10:08 AM PST - 11 comments

SpeedingTicketFilter. So I got a ticket for going 74 in a 55 MPH zone. Should I bother fighting it? (Details Inside) [more inside]
posted by jeremias at 9:58 AM PST - 48 comments

[FreelanceFilter] My wife is about to launch her freelance design (web, print, flash, branding) business. Never having done this, and being Mac-people, we were looking for a recommendation on a good accounting/client software package. Something that would allow client tracking, billing hours and invoicing would be helpful. What are you guys using?
posted by TeamBilly at 9:44 AM PST - 13 comments

NewParentFilter: To Co-Sleep or not to Co-Sleep, that is the question! The Family Bed versus 'give 'em their own room' is like the proverbial Protestant vs. Catholic thing-- The battle lines are fiercely drawn and both sides are convinced the other is the devil's work. We can easily weigh and analyze all the co-sleeping arguments (pro and con) that affect us (the parents) ie. like love life and worse sleep. But what about for the kid? What is really best for her? Any real research on this? Any anecdotal stuff that might help us decide?
posted by limitedpie at 9:15 AM PST - 30 comments

So its -36C (about -33F with a windchill of -49C or -56F!!!), and needless to say, my plugged in car is frozen solid. Any tips on getting it going again?
posted by Quartermass at 8:56 AM PST - 24 comments

MovieFilter. In The Goonies, Rudy and Lord Of The Rings characters played by Sean Astin deliver impassioned inspirational speeches. In what other movies has he done this? Does Sean Astin give impassioned inspirational speeches in all of his films?
posted by Fuzzy Monster at 8:55 AM PST - 11 comments

NewYorkBarFilter: A good bar in Midtown East? (The details, they are inside). [more inside]
posted by safetyfork at 7:53 AM PST - 11 comments

I need a form-to-email gateway script that works with Windows 2000 Server (SP4) and CDONTS or CDO.SYS to send the email. I'm thinking that the ASP port of Formmail is my best bet, but since I have no experience whatsoever with Windows Servers or ASP whatsoever, I'm a bit lost. What is my best (preferably free) option? [more inside]
posted by ScottUltra at 7:47 AM PST - 6 comments

I'm fascinated by the intricacies of good old letterpress printing. there are lots of online and book resources re typefaces, but not as many regarding the letterpress printing. I'd love to learn more, but google isn't really helping. Any good books or websites? [more inside]
posted by matteo at 7:31 AM PST - 10 comments

I'm looking for intelligent conversation. Does anyone have any recommendations for laid-back online chat? [More Inside] [more inside]
posted by LeeJay at 6:41 AM PST - 13 comments

I should be able to find this, but google isn't treating me well. There is this quote which I thought was by Emerson, but now I'm not sure... It goes something like "I will say one thing today and say the opposite thing tomorrow and defend it strongly." (Obviously I'm no quote expert, but that's the gist of it). Any help appreciated.
posted by pissfactory at 6:03 AM PST - 6 comments

What is a good birthday present for a baby's first birthday?
A friend of ours is having a birthday party for her 1 year old today and my wife and I have no idea what might be appropriate for that age. Also, our friend says the baby already has too many toys, so we are stumped.
posted by uramesiya at 5:56 AM PST - 23 comments

Does anyone know what the music played at the beginning of this year's MacWorld SF stream is (while the copyright notice is displayed)? I ask because my usual tactic of Googling for relevant lyrics has failed due to it being the tail-end of the track. Thank you!
posted by danhon at 11:23 PM PST - 2 comments

Garageband came with my computer, and I don't understand it at all. I was expecting it to be simpler than a four-track, but it's not. My computer (a G5) tells me that it has a built-in microphone, but when I play with Garageband, nothing happens. Are there any simple and detailed web tutorials about how to use this program? Caveat: I am basically computer-illiterate.
posted by interrobang at 11:11 PM PST - 8 comments

In the past I've had some fun with making music using tracker programs to make .mod files (and .s3m, etc). I'm guessing this is probably a bit outdated now, so my question is really twofold...[more inside] [more inside]
posted by tomble at 10:04 PM PST - 11 comments

US fridge-filter. I am trying to find a large refrigerator with a very small freezer. My google skills fail me, and I cannot find any sources that easily provides this information (especially since manufacturers don't report usable cubic footage). Suggestions are also welcome, although it must be Energy Star and shelves that slide out are highly desirable.
posted by QIbHom at 9:14 PM PST - 6 comments

Where should I get married in Las Vegas? [More Inside] [more inside]
posted by dual_action at 8:27 PM PST - 17 comments

I just rediscovered the greatness of the Live Music Archive and would like to covert the .shn shows to .mp3, so they will play on an iPod (the FAQ implies this is OK as long as they are not uploaded or distributed). Are there any freeware (XP) programs that can batch process these files? Bonus points if there is a program that can also add converted files to iTunes.
posted by ajr at 7:54 PM PST - 13 comments

I do a bit of drinking, and I'm looking for a new toast. "Panties: Not the best thing in the world, but right next to it." is what my friends use, but it's getting a little old. Any suggestions? (Witty and sublime both appreciated)
posted by absalom at 6:33 PM PST - 105 comments

After reading hundreds of blogs (Why, oh why?), I’ve come to the conclusion that a big number of the people who write about their own financial situation, explicitly or indirectly tell of how broke they are; Like Jim Anchower, many describe low wages and bad jobs, job losses and unemployment, crashing bills, life in apartments with roommates who don’t care and having a hard time paying rents & bills, etc. I understand that the real median household income in 2003 was $43,318 (US), and I know that times are hard for most people. Still, is the average blogger poorer than the average person?
posted by growabrain at 6:21 PM PST - 18 comments

I am looking for an album that I thought was called 'winter solstice'. Google / amazon, etc disagree with me. I have found lots of albums with the title 'winter solstice' in them, but none of them seem to be the one I looking for. (More inside). [more inside]
posted by cayla at 5:28 PM PST - 11 comments

BodypartCuriosityFilter - I just read a news article where Tom Ridge wants fingerprints on passports. I also have seen, (I'm assuming due to security concerns), increased requests/demands for fingerprints in banks, at customs, etc.

So, my question is this - what happens when they run into a double hand amputee? Do they get a prosthetic/hook/deviceprint? Or, does someone make a note that says 'no hands'? Or is something else done?
posted by spinifex23 at 3:55 PM PST - 18 comments

Im too good to pay for a remote desktop application so I searched for the best/most secure and found Back Oriface 2k. The problem is that now Mcafee shits it self and deletes it! Is there anyway to get McAfee to ignore or it am i going to have to uninstall Mcafee?

or - second question: Is there a better one out there that doesn't have the unfortunate reputation as being a script kiddie tool?
posted by Tryptophan-5ht at 3:37 PM PST - 18 comments

DVD Troubles: For Christmas I received a DVD box set of an 80's tv miniseries that I loved as a young teenager. The second and third two-sided DVDs showed as "bad" in my DVD player. With much sadness, I packed it up and returned the item to Amazon, requesting an exchange.

Today I received the replacement set. I eagerly popped the second DVD into the DVD player so I could finish my miniseries marathon. But it is yet again showing as "bad." I tried this DVD in two players (one cheap, one midlevel), both with the same result. There are no hairs, scratches, fingerprints, or dust. So what is going on, and what should I do?
posted by xyzzy at 2:42 PM PST - 13 comments

Are ads in RSS feeds possible/good/bad or just ugly? [MI] [more inside]
posted by turbodog at 2:26 PM PST - 16 comments

Do you use web sites' "send this page to a friend" tools, or just copy the URL and paste it into an email? (I copy-and-paste because I'm jaded and cynical and suspect the tools collect email addresses.)
posted by kirkaracha at 2:12 PM PST - 22 comments

Can anyone help me locate movies that contain the phrase "Things are not what they seem." in the dialog? [more inside]
posted by milovoo at 12:41 PM PST - 31 comments

Clothesfilter: I'm looking for low-rise chinos/khakis for men. Banana/J Crew/etc fail me. Any ideas? I wear Levi's 527s in jeans, which fit perfectly. Bonus points: I've been thinking of trying Land's End's custom option, but I'm suspicious - does anyone have experience with that?
posted by symbebekos at 12:41 PM PST - 8 comments

My friend cannot send emails from his .mac address to my .gmail address. We can send emails back and forth routing to/from different addresses, so it's not our accounts individually. Anybody else have this problem?
posted by billysumday at 12:30 PM PST - 8 comments

Can anyone recommend any good recent articles or papers on whether the universe is infinite or finite? I've heard that scientists suspect that the universe is flat, which lends credence to the infinite-universe hypothesis. I've decided I don't know enough about this. Nothing too technical, please, though I'd prefer something more complex than an article from a newspaper science section.
posted by painquale at 12:27 PM PST - 20 comments

What do you know about hostels? I have never stayed at one and am thinking of taking an Amtrak train from Chicago to Glacier Nat'l Park for a week. Please post your experiences, good and bad. [more inside]
posted by cincidog at 12:19 PM PST - 22 comments

KeepingUpWithTheKidsFilter: How do you keep up with new books, music, films, etc.? More inside. [more inside]
posted by eatcherry at 12:17 PM PST - 20 comments

Got a GameCube and would like some players' feedback regarding building a library. [+]
posted by blueshammer at 12:14 PM PST - 45 comments

How much do you pay your nanny? I'm in the process of hiring a regular babysitter for my kids. I've found someone I like, a college student with tons of experience who's really great with my little ones. She'll just be here two mornings a week-- one morning with just my infant and the other morning with my toddler as well. How much should I offer her? What about tips? What else do I need to know? This is in Chicago, but I'm also curious if the going rate varies in different parts of the country/world.
posted by bonheur at 12:10 PM PST - 8 comments

MacPlungeFilter: I'm one of those "IPod users with a PC" who is thinking about taking the plunge to the other side by adding a Mac Mini to my home network. I don't want to clutter up AskMe with too much product-specific chatter, so my question is, where are some good message boards I can read to increase my knowledge, of Mac OS X in general and, in specific, what I will need to do to get the Mac to use fileshares and peripherals on my existing network. All the better if the denizens of the community are not hostile to incoming Windoze users.
posted by matildaben at 11:58 AM PST - 17 comments

Extreme Makeover Home Edition: How do they do that/... No, really, how? Do they really build a house in a week? Do they really just show up and surprise the family? This seems improbable. [+] [more inside]
posted by duck at 10:50 AM PST - 17 comments

Civil service exams. Anyone ever taken them? What did you do to prepare? This is in Illinois, if it makes a difference.
posted by sugarfish at 10:49 AM PST - 5 comments

What's the plastic wrapper thing on the end of a shoelace called? Usually the first thing to go and almost always requires buying new laces. Is there a company that provides JUST those things?
posted by omidius at 10:46 AM PST - 17 comments

How do you get rid of earworms (a song that keeps repeating in your head throughout the day)?
posted by lorbus at 10:38 AM PST - 34 comments

I am building a website using css. I have it setup so that it automatically places a border around my images. How can I make one image ignore this css tag?
posted by chiababe at 10:22 AM PST - 10 comments

I've had Vonage for a year + now and have no intention of going back to Verizon. And yet when I called Verizon to get them to detach and remove their ugly wires from my home, they want to bill me for the work. What are my rights?
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 9:57 AM PST - 18 comments

Calendar and Scheduling management in a Mac Shop: I'm currently the tech for an all mac shop that uses an old exchange server to do all email, scheduling, etc. We primarily use Entourage as a client. I'd like to switch over to an XServe, running Os X Server, however, I can't seem to find a replacement for the calendar and scheduling features in exchange and entourage. Are there any options out there that are Mac friendly? I'd love to leave the old windows box behind, it's been giving me nothing but headaches. Thanks.
posted by Freen at 9:48 AM PST - 6 comments

Relating to yesterday's credit check question, how do you reply to a prospective employer who wants your salary history in a way that's fair to your value? So many IT/Web type jobs over the past few years have seen pay rates chopped down. If they ask, and A) I know my former employers don't give out salary information; and B) they don't require some sort of three year old pay stub - then why can't I just fluff it up to my true value again? I don't want to get in trouble, but I'm sick of getting low-balled. There's no way I can let them continue to get away with this! Do you just lie? What's the system?
posted by anonymous at 9:35 AM PST - 11 comments

Why hasn't Al Qaeda perpetrated an attack on U.S. soil since 9/11?
posted by gwint at 9:33 AM PST - 47 comments

When did "the Internet" become "the internets"? Seems a fairly new phenom, but I can't seem to trace it specifically to any one thing/person/place.
posted by WolfDaddy at 9:09 AM PST - 26 comments

Teeth grinding and biting. My boyfriend has been complaining that I bite my teeth together quite loudly when I sleep. My google research indicates that this qualifies as bruxism and that it's probably stress related, but has anyone had any success with any particular forms of stress reduction (exercises, meditations, etc.) or behavioral modifications to solve this?
posted by occhiblu at 9:01 AM PST - 17 comments

Is it possible to get image files off a corrupted CompactFlash card? [more insi#$&*(!NO CARRIER] [more inside]
posted by Vidiot at 8:50 AM PST - 6 comments

A friend and I are hoping to go to SXSW's music portion this year. I am 22, but my friend will only be 20. Will we have trouble getting into a lot of the shows? Will the whole SXSW experience not be fun for us? Is all the fun to be had 21 and over? And uh... How well will a fake ID work down there?
posted by lotsofno at 8:46 AM PST - 4 comments

I’m looking for alternatives to/improvements on nursing home care in the NY/NJ/CT area for an elderly person with disabilities. [+] [more inside]
posted by hilatron at 8:22 AM PST - 2 comments

Ad-Culture Filter: Inspired by an odd source, I find myself wondering this morning about some sub-cultural differentiators within ad-shops....[MI] [more inside]
posted by lodurr at 8:18 AM PST - 8 comments

My wife and I are going to Orlando on vacation next month.
I'm looking to go visit some of the parks however I was wondering if there is a way to acquire tickets at a reduced cost. Has anyone found a way to do this without using the timeshare method (free tickets for them trying to sell you something)?
posted by Hands of Manos at 7:39 AM PST - 12 comments

Is there an easy and free way to do text-to-mp3 conversion on a Windows system? How about the other way 'round? [more inside]
posted by monju_bosatsu at 6:48 AM PST - 3 comments

Is there any way I can get a Vivicam-30 to load on to Mas OS 9 or X machines? Read the history of my attempts to do so over here. Ta very much!
posted by Wolof at 2:11 AM PST - 3 comments

I would like to help a very talented friend to get a scholarship to study graphic design (postgrad) in Europe or the US.
She lives in an Arab country, which in my naive opinion could work for her advantage (with all the bridge-building that should be going on right now). From Google I got dozens of graphic design schools to which apparently she would have to apply, get accepted and then apply for a scholarship. Does anybody have some personal/anecdotal knowledge that could help her? Schools with better chance of offering her a full scholarship or some relevant EU program maybe. Thanks [more inside]
posted by golo at 1:06 AM PST - 8 comments

CatFilter: How can one person restrain a cat in order to put eye drops in the cat's eyes? Without inujuring the cat or person, of course.
posted by Fat Guy at 12:43 AM PST - 20 comments

Apropos of this thread, I'm curious if there is any sort of 'opposite' to Autism/Asperberger's... [more inside]
posted by GriffX at 12:11 AM PST - 16 comments

OS-less laptops: I'm in the market for a new laptop computer, and I've got a couple of unused XP licenses currently going to waste. Where can I buy a reliable laptop computer without paying the Microsoft Tax? [more inside]
posted by gd779 at 11:07 PM PST - 10 comments

I am in the last semester of my undergraduate years, and am facing the prospect of 'real life' in a few months. I live in Los Angeles and am planning on pursuing music and screenwriting as a career, but obviously will need to work to support myself while I pursue these unlikely options. I am wondering what suggestions people have as to what jobs would pay a living wage relatively quickly without much experience...[more inside] [more inside]
posted by rooftop secrets at 10:41 PM PST - 15 comments

Clean energy filter! I just ran a pair of rechargeable AA batteries through the wash. On the top ends, there is a black plastic or paper ring or collar that is under the plastic label and which appears to tuck beneath the edge of the nubby positive metal pole. Compared to an unwashed pair, this black material is warped, probably swollen from water. The washed batteries do not perceptibly weigh more than a never-washed pair.

Should I toss 'em or risk the Chernobyl-like consequences that may result from using them? Are they toast?
posted by mwhybark at 10:33 PM PST - 8 comments

Another coffee topic:
What is the best way to store coffee grounds? [more inside]
posted by Kilovolt at 9:56 PM PST - 41 comments

Is there any benefit to using a flatbed scanner instead of a copy stand with a digital camera to digitize flat art?
posted by alana at 8:16 PM PST - 8 comments

BasicCoffeeQuestionFilter: In the morning I usually brew too large a pot of coffee, and leave it on (and therefore hot) all day. Sometimes I'll drink some in the evening, many hours later. Clearly not gourmet behavior. What are supposed to be the effects of this kind of treatment on the coffee's flavor and caffeine punch? If I want to keep the coffee for the evening, would I be better off letting it get cool and then turning the coffee maker back on to reheat it later?
posted by rustcellar at 7:56 PM PST - 22 comments

So let's say, hypothetically, I wanted to throw a party of some kind, themed around monster movies. The twist, though, is that we'll be rooting for the monsters. To this end, I want to find human-shaped food. [crunchy bits inside]
posted by wanderingmind at 7:30 PM PST - 33 comments

Coming to New York for a week's holiday. I'd like to find a nice, interesting hotel in a convienient location for touristy things, preferably with free in-room wifi, for about $200 per night (for a double room). Any tips? [more inside]
posted by ascullion at 7:23 PM PST - 11 comments

Who was the artist covering Ain't Misbehavin' on NPR today? Heard around 4 pm eastern on WAMU. Female. Mena something?
posted by NortonDC at 7:12 PM PST - 7 comments

I'm looking for experiences and/or information about working for either Sapeint and/or Agency.com--culture, compensation, workload, the usual.
posted by gsh at 6:48 PM PST - 8 comments

YetAnotherQuestionAboutVideoCardsFilter: I am going to buy a new computer for browsing/photo editing/mp3 playing/excel editing/cd burning. I am _NOT_ going to be playing games on the machine. Does it matter what video card I get? I'm tempted to get an ATI Radeon 9200SE since it doesn't have a fan and I want a quiet PC.
posted by selfnoise at 5:14 PM PST - 10 comments

I'm thinking of dumping my home Redhat 9 linux server in favor of the new cheap Mac Mini to serve the same purpose (file, web, mail). Is this a good idea? [mi] [more inside]
posted by sfluke20 at 3:47 PM PST - 13 comments

Wanted: an antonym for "loophole." Yes, I've spent an hour or more on Google. Sense needed: Where a loophole is an ambiguity in a law or regulation that, like a knothole in a plank, allows something to get through that should have been stopped. The term I'm looking for would describe this:

-- a state corporate/business code/law/regulation that exempts the owner/manager/director from almost all personal responsibility/liability for the actions of the business -- but that has one remaining offense for which, if the business gets convicted, the state court may hold the owner, manager or director personally liable.

The sense is one plank of the fence left standing; one tooth left in the watchdog's mouth, or something like that. It's scary where Google leads, looking for this -- into the history of how laws are made with great fanfare then eroded and dismantled and undercut to where they accomplish almost nothing.
posted by hank at 3:39 PM PST - 27 comments

OK. Jessamyn (about 3 posts down) asks a similar question BUT . . . I too, am employed as a librarian who makes occasional (shitty) money on the side writing feature articles or whatever comes my way. In May I am moving to Argentina. I plan on returning for grad school in Journalism in 2006 and want to bolster my writing resume. Question: How difficult is it to do correspondence writing if I don't already have an in? Any travel writers out there? What's the secret?
posted by punkbitch at 3:15 PM PST - 3 comments

ReggaeFilter: Help finding a Reggae song. [MI] [more inside]
posted by mlis at 3:14 PM PST - 13 comments

After reading this comment some of us have wondered:
How common is it for employers to google prospective employees?
posted by gluechunk at 2:21 PM PST - 32 comments

Around 1997 there was a website a guy made that detailed all of Led Zeppelin's recording sessions down to the most minute detail. Even pointing out that you could hear John Bonham's bass drum pedal squeaking throughout most of Physical Grafitti (like in the song Houses of the Holy)...or the sounds of tapes/edits being dubbed together, or other studio anomalies. Anyway, I can't find the site any longer and this kind of crap fascinates me. Does anybody know of other sites like this that anaylise the recordings of well known recordings??
posted by punkfloyd at 1:18 PM PST - 7 comments

Voltage query: What are the disadvantages of regularly using electronics made for 110V using a step down voltage transformer in a 220V - 240V country?
posted by riffola at 12:45 PM PST - 14 comments

MusicRecommendationFilter: Foreign pop, anyone? (more inside...) [more inside]
posted by drpynchon at 12:43 PM PST - 30 comments

Some time in the 80's one of the American publishing houses put out a series of horror novels for young adult readers, called "Twilight." I assume they're out-of-print, but am having an impossible time finding them in secondhand stores or on the internet. Does anyone remember them and have more information about them which might help me track some down? [+] [more inside]
posted by crush-onastick at 11:38 AM PST - 6 comments

Looking for good, free online writers' forums to try and promote a magazine project I'm working on. Where on the web do poets and short story writers tend to congregate, and how can I reach that audience (preferably without spending any money)?
posted by BackwardsCity at 11:06 AM PST - 3 comments

Help forming a 501c / nonprofit for an art gallery. [+] [more inside]
posted by fishfucker at 11:00 AM PST - 12 comments

Yet another ChildhoodBookFilter question. This one involves ancient Egypt. [+] [more inside]
posted by deborah at 10:55 AM PST - 5 comments

What are some good online resources for the recently unemployed, particularly free or cheap software that helps me manage contact info, calls, appointments, mailings (like a CRM for jobhunting)? Also, recommendations for software for staying on top of the billing for freelance work?
posted by luser at 10:27 AM PST - 2 comments

I'm looking for a good inn/hotel within three hours drive of San Francisco where I can have a room with a private hot tub on a deck with a view of the Pacific Ocean. Winter storm vacation!
posted by Nelson at 10:20 AM PST - 9 comments

Who's blogging Jobs' MacWorld keynote?
posted by timeistight at 9:46 AM PST - 28 comments

I'm a writer, in addition to being a librarian. I'd like to do more writing and get paid more for it than I have been getting paid, perhaps work on larger projects. Do I need an agent? Could I benefit from an agent? [+] [more inside]
posted by jessamyn at 9:16 AM PST - 6 comments

I'd like an open source version of Salon.com for a trade-specific website. Everyone can see part of an article, subscribers can see the entire article. I'd prefer to spend my time creating content and the less on code and administration on my side, the better. Are there any open source apps which do this or am I doomed to code it from scratch?
posted by Tacodog at 8:25 AM PST - 8 comments

I've agreed on short notice to go skiing next week, and realize that I'm out of shape. Is there anything I can do to prepare myself so that I'm not putting myself at risk of injury, or that will keep my legs from feeling very sore after the first day? I only have 8 days.
posted by stovenator at 8:18 AM PST - 10 comments

Tonight the father of a close friend of mine passed away. In the last month this is the third relative he has lost and his mother is in cancer treatement : more inside [more inside]
posted by elpapacito at 7:53 AM PST - 12 comments

I'm looking for architectural drawings of parking garages. My partner and I want to build a parking garage on a 22,000 square foot property in a downtown area of South Florida. I would like to see how a build-out comparable in size might look. Anyone have any resources or ideas?
posted by travis vocino at 7:43 AM PST - 7 comments

Indie/ObscureMusicFilter: How do you explain to strangers or acquaintances what kinds of music you listen to? (+) [more inside]
posted by evadery at 7:36 AM PST - 55 comments

Someone at work has just asked me a bizarre question that I can't find an answer to - can horses (and in fact any other animal) actually throw up? (+)
posted by longbaugh at 5:49 AM PST - 30 comments

Is there a way in Mac OS X to use iCal with an exchange server? Entourage for the Mac isn't all that wonderful compared to the built in Mail app and I like the ability to use the ldap server to look up names without an extra step. The only thing the Mail app is missing is integration with the calendaring events like Entourage has. Any help?
posted by thebwit at 5:20 AM PST - 1 comment

OrganizeFilter: Seeking a Delicious Library clone for Windows. [MI] [more inside]
posted by bkdelong at 5:19 AM PST - 4 comments

London Mefi folks, a question: I've recently moved to London, and am searching for the equivalent of craigslist to buy some simple household items (like a Hoover). The London site of Craigslist seems a little weak. Any recommendations?
posted by mtstover at 2:53 AM PST - 18 comments

I love peanut butter, preferring creamy over chunky... but it doesn't really matter. I'm pretty sure I love peanut butter now as much as I ever did when I was a kid. What are some of your favorite ways to eat peanut butter and/or use it in other recipes? [more inside]
posted by Witty at 1:33 AM PST - 69 comments

When I hear English spoken with, say, a Spanish or a Persian accent, I find it interesting and intriguing. However, whenever I hear Spanish or Farsi spoken with an (American) English accent, I find it irritating and unattractive.
Why doesn't it work both ways? (+) [more inside]
posted by BuddhaInABucket at 1:12 AM PST - 21 comments

Does anyone know if helicopter flight simulators are easily available in the UK and if so the approximate costs? I could never pass a medical to fly the real thing but would dearly love to try the technique
posted by Cancergiggles at 12:39 AM PST - 3 comments

How would you publish an anonymous memoir?
posted by anonymous at 12:18 AM PST - 9 comments

TravelFilter: I'm hoping to visit central/eastern Europe this summer. Recommendations of what to see and what to skip? [more inside]
posted by BradNelson at 11:43 PM PST - 15 comments

Do you remember a children's book that involved a couple of kids who wrote and produced a play (that eventually included Neil Diamond and the Vice-President of the USA) to surreptitiously raise the money they needed to build a hang-glider? What was it?! [+] [more inside]
posted by subgenius at 9:59 PM PST - 9 comments

Books for a 10-year-old girl with a learning disability? (+) [more inside]
posted by TiredStarling at 9:45 PM PST - 13 comments

So after 25 years in the computer biz, my dad goes out and buys an organic cattle farm in central Virginia. Now, he's buying a slaughterhouse and is starting his own brand of organic, grass fed, really tasty beef. So, he needs an online store. We're looking for a good online store system that is easy to setup and cheap to run. I've set up Yahoo Stores before, is there anything better out there? What are your experiences in out of the box online commerce solutions?
posted by trbrts at 8:23 PM PST - 12 comments

Is there such a thing as "compassionate tourism" where people travel and volunteer their time/resources in rebuilding, in this case, the tsunami-hit South Asian region?
posted by azul at 7:25 PM PST - 16 comments

Background checks: I have a job interview coming up, and wonder if they'll do a credit check. If they do, I'm in trouble. I need this job very badly...thus the bad credit. Besides credit, employers may check education and criminal backgrounds (mine are clean), but do they have to let you know? How do you ask a potential employer about this without raising flags? While we're on it, is there a secret shit-list out there that employers may go to to see if you're a loser? Especially in software/web development in the northwest...
posted by anonymous at 7:05 PM PST - 42 comments

eBay newbie help. What pointers do you have for selling on eBay? Favorite websites and tutorials? How to list effectively? How to get started and build up a positive rep? Negative experiences? Positive experiences? [more inside]
posted by loquacious at 6:41 PM PST - 19 comments

Last-minute Brazil accomodations: a friend and I are traveling to Brazil from January 28th to February 6th. She won a free ticket, it's a bit of a spur-of-the-moment thing, and of course it overlaps with Brazil's biggest festival. Please help us find lodging near Salvador. [MI] [more inside]
posted by lbergstr at 6:21 PM PST - 7 comments

VitaminFilter: I am a reasonably healthy male in my twenties, and I take a regular old Centrum multivitamin every day. My current huge container is almost empty, and before I buy another one, I'm wondering if there's something better. Is there really any difference between the various brands of multivitamins? Is there a brand better suited for someone my age? I have access to Whole Foods, Wild Oats, Trader Joes, etc., if that helps.
posted by jed at 5:56 PM PST - 25 comments

I'm going to be undertaking a big purge and organize campaign with my belongings over the next week. Can anyone recommend a good program (OS X) for an inventory or am I better off just creating a spreadsheet? (mi) [more inside]
posted by stefnet at 5:54 PM PST - 6 comments

The economics of Chinatown: why is stuff so cheap there? [Your fortune says: more inside!] [more inside]
posted by stonerose at 5:09 PM PST - 15 comments

Can you identify this obscure American independent film? It aired seemingly incessantly on IFC circa 1998-1999, and at the time seemed to be of recent vintage. It was shot entirely in black and white, and concerned a love triangle between a dissolute art photographer recently returned to New York City, his jaded, long-suffering wife, and the teenage girl both of them are sleeping with. The girl convinces her wealthy parents to bankroll a show of the photographer's work, which they are dismayed to discover at the show's opening consists almost entirely of naked pictures of their daughter. I should hasten to add that this was not an especially good movie.
posted by jjg at 4:52 PM PST - 7 comments

Is it worth it yet to upgrade from Movable Type 2.661 to 3.14? [more inside]
posted by swank6 at 4:38 PM PST - 8 comments

What is the best way to learn professional level kitchen knife skills? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by rorycberger at 4:22 PM PST - 31 comments

Can I legally sublet my apartment in Brooklyn for an entire year, or longer? Can I charge more than my current rent? [more specifics inside] [more inside]
posted by owenville at 4:16 PM PST - 6 comments

Can anyone recommend some good recipe sites that include nutritional information with the recipes? (Calories/fat, etc.)
posted by frenetic at 4:12 PM PST - 7 comments

Where'd my iDisk go?
I was uploading some graphics to my iDisk today and noticed that the .Pictures folder was empty. That shouldn't be. [There's more, but not on my iDisk.] [more inside]
posted by emelenjr at 3:40 PM PST - 6 comments

Help for severe bruising following surgery? (More, including about a dozen titanium screws holding my jaw together, inside.) [more inside]
posted by scody at 3:38 PM PST - 12 comments

What's the easiest way to compose HTML messages in Outlook 2003? I know I can go to the format menu and choose between plain text, HTML or Rich Text, but choosing HTML just gives me access to some really lame formatting tools. I'd like to be able to enter/edit source code directly for the body of the message.
posted by willnot at 2:37 PM PST - 7 comments

So what exactly was Anita Mui's role in House of Flying Daggers? There seems to be plenty of press on how it got written out after she died, but no mention of what exactly it was.
posted by calistasm at 2:14 PM PST - 2 comments

Children's SF-Fantasy: For years, I have been trying to remember the name of a book I read as a child, in the mid-1980s. It is a novel, appropriate for 8-12 year olds, in a vaguely medieval/fantasy setting. The main character (I think) is a boy who goes into a forest (on a journey? a quest?) - he meets a girl there who is a firewitch, with really bright orange hair. Sorry for the vagueness, but I was about eight at the time, and haven't been able to find it since. [more inside]
posted by jb at 2:13 PM PST - 8 comments

Last week, I updated my linksys WRT54G's firmware and soon the hardware was dead (I think it was a coincidence). I was stranded without a connection and picked up a brand new WRT54GS which worked ok, but keeps dropping wireless clients and the point will disappear every so often, even though it is only 15 feet away. How can I fix this? (a bit more inside) [more inside]
posted by mathowie at 2:11 PM PST - 20 comments

My head is an in-between size. I want to shrink a fitted New Era baseball cap very slightly, by maybe a sixteenth of an inch. Google only seems to tell me how to avoid doing so, and putting it in the dryer strikes me as overkill. Any tips from the local chapeau connoisseurs? Or should I just put off my next trip to the barber's?
posted by DrJohnEvans at 1:27 PM PST - 6 comments

Anyone know what hip-hop song sampled from Henry Mancini's score for the Pink Panther? Not the main sax theme, but a recurring vibraphone-type riff...
posted by Robot Johnny at 1:14 PM PST - 6 comments

I'm in the market for a new computer, and wanted suggestions on a good website to go through to buy a custom built one. I'm looking for a site that is cheap but has all the latest technology to choose from and will assemble the system for me (no Pricewatch). Google turns out lots of different sites, but I wanted to ask MeFites about their personal experiences.
posted by Malachi Constant at 1:12 PM PST - 12 comments

I don't like scary movies, but I love scary websites. What's the scariest site you've found? [mi] [more inside]
posted by arielmeadow at 1:03 PM PST - 24 comments

Guitar Filter: Can you ID this Gibson guitar? [more inside]
posted by jackofsaxons at 12:54 PM PST - 23 comments

Weird theoretical question filter: At the moment, gas exhaust from cars rises, and produces a layer of smog above large cities. If everyone used hydrogen fuel cells, this exhaust would be water vapor. Does this mean that it would often be rainy or cloudy due to this water exhaust? If not, what would happen?
posted by unreason at 10:31 AM PST - 18 comments

So, I received Half-Life 2 / Counter-Strike:Source as a gift, and I think it's time to upgrade my system. I'm fairly good with homebuilding computers, but the new graphics card offerings have me a bit confused. [+] [more inside]
posted by aberrant at 10:27 AM PST - 21 comments

I'm looking to buy some new sheets, and I'm getting the impression that thread count is a one-dimensional measure of goodness, like clock speeds for CPUs. What do you look for in bed sheets to figure out how comfy they are? Is 100% cotton the way to go, or will a blend be easier to look after? No brand name testimonials please.
posted by cardboard at 9:58 AM PST - 39 comments

BAY AREA FILTER: Hey everyone... one of my best friends and his wife are moving to San Francisco, and I offered to help them figure out where they may want to move. If you live there, or have lived there, where would you recommend? They'd like an active lifestyle, and safe. Aside from that, he's making 50k and needs easy access to Mission Bay for work. They also really want public transit.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.
posted by silusGROK at 9:47 AM PST - 14 comments

Considering the huge number of members in the NYC area, can anyone suggest touristy things to do on a weekend (Feb 12-14) in Manhattan? [<--] [more inside]
posted by jpburns at 9:26 AM PST - 34 comments

Does anybody know of a way to automatically listen to all the linked mp3s on a web page? [MI] [more inside]
posted by maniactown at 8:45 AM PST - 7 comments

Rather unexpectedly, I'm going to be in San Diego this Saturday thru Monday and I'd like to do something fun, maybe unusual. [+] [more inside]
posted by FlamingBore at 8:34 AM PST - 17 comments

When you swallow a pill and it kind of feels like it's stuck in your throat, is it really "stuck" or is that just a sensory illusion?
posted by bkeaggy at 8:12 AM PST - 9 comments

MT weirdness: last night I upgraded from 2.64 to 3.14, apparently flawlessly. Today I've noticed that I cannot access the past two weeks of archive. [+] [more inside]
posted by moonbird at 7:01 AM PST - 5 comments

If a pregnant mother had trichinosis, would she inevitably pass it on to her child? If her child were born and went untreated, would the child survive? How long might it survive, and with what symptoms?
posted by Shane at 6:24 AM PST - 10 comments

Walkable Community Question. I'm an expat American, looking to move back soon - My family and I want to live in a small, walkable, thriving community without too much sprawl. Please guide me. [MI] [more inside]
posted by Dag Maggot at 5:20 AM PST - 44 comments

I'm a Gmail user, and although I have no real idea... it seems like they have been beta testing for a long time. Is it normal for it to go on this long, and when are they likely to end the beta period?
posted by The Thnikkaman at 5:02 AM PST - 19 comments

I'm looking for a retail store in the Los Angeles that has cheap linux distribution CD/DVDs.
posted by rdr at 4:07 AM PST - 3 comments

My COBRA runs out tomorrow. I've applied to a private carrier and was declined already. I was under the impression that if there wasn't a 63 day gap in coverage, they had to insure me. [mi] [more inside]
posted by pieoverdone at 3:21 AM PST - 7 comments

Looking for a Site Counter for an NGO's website. They're prepared to pay. The host can't/won't do counts.

Ideally, it wouldn't involve putting a tracker on every page and we would get a weekly/monthly report as a word or pdf file.
posted by quarsan at 2:26 AM PST - 5 comments

I have lots of cds. I've been keeping them on shelves, but the collection has outgrown my current set of homemade bookshelves. Any ideas for housing >300 disks? [+] [more inside]
posted by handee at 1:53 AM PST - 32 comments

Is there a way to tint an entire web page a certain colour? As in, not actually altering the images and other content to be tinted that colour, just for the content to look that way when viewed on that page. It sounds to me like something that could be done with CSS but I'm really not sure. Google's results aren't turning up quite what I'm looking for, although maybe I just suck at finding the right words for this query.
posted by DyRE at 12:00 AM PST - 8 comments

FM time-shiftingfilter: I purchased a Griffin radioshark, and, although a great idea, its FM reception is for crap. It doesn't pick up the one station I listen to all the time -- KCRW -- and my home is just 25 miles from Santa Monica.

Griffin says an external antenna can be plugged into the headphone jack in the back of the unit. Of course, they also say plugging in headphones will serve the same purpose, and still the reception is poor (no improvement). Trouble is: I can't seem to find any external FM antennas on the net that explicitly state they plug into a headphone jack. Is a headphone jack called something else? I've been going down googleholes for hours with no answer.
posted by mrkinla at 11:03 PM PST - 10 comments

What MP3 blogs are you reading/listening to at the moment? [more inside]
posted by rocket_skates at 10:41 PM PST - 15 comments

Free/Open source shared calendar solutions? [mi] [more inside]
posted by reverendX at 9:37 PM PST - 4 comments

BereavementFilter: Etiquettement dilemma about opening/agitating mourning versus sharing in a small life-afirming-recollection-of-the-deceased, er, something (the [+] might make more sense, sorry) [more inside]
posted by PurplePorpoise at 9:15 PM PST - 12 comments

I really am not excited about a friend's engagement and I think it's really stupid and rushed into. They're throwing a party. This is the second time they're trying to throw it, and I have a suspicion (because it was never cancelled before) that nobody even came the first time. I don't even want to be her friend anymore. Do I have to go? More generally, is it at all possible to handle the end of the friendship well?
posted by anonymous at 9:04 PM PST - 21 comments

NinjaFilter: Help me select a present for a Japanese-weapon-loving friend. [MI] [more inside]
posted by bac at 7:17 PM PST - 16 comments

ToothWhiteningFilter: I received a box of Crest Whitestrips Supreme over the holidays - which would have been a pretty cruel gift, actually, but it was more of a take-one-from-a-grab-bag thing - and can't figure out how to use them. [More inside...] [more inside]
posted by Sinner at 2:00 PM PST - 13 comments

I live in a 3-unit apartment building in Chicago and left for a 2-week period during the Christmas/New Year's holiday. Before I left, I turned the heat off and one of the water pipes burst due to the cold weather. Anyone know what my responsibility is regarding paying for damages? There is no stipulation in my lease that says I have to keep the heat on during the wintertime. The damage was to a "common area" storage room that belonged to my upstairs neighbor. He wants me to pay for his insurance deductible.
posted by buddha9090 at 1:47 PM PST - 24 comments

I remember a post on Mefi within the last 18 months about an artist who paints giant three dimensional words over otherwise bland nature scenes, as though the words were giant sculptures in the middle of the wild. Now I've forgotten his name, and can't seem to find the link... can anyone tell me the name of this artist?
posted by jonson at 1:26 PM PST - 3 comments

Document management. I get a lot of paper documents (bills, letters, invoices, etc) and want to catalog them digitally. I want a program that scans a sheet (or multiple sheets), turns them into PDF and catalogs them (title, category, and maybe even del.icio.us style tags). Acrobat will do the first two stages, but I want something that does the cataloging too. Any suggestions? OCR not needed whatsoever.
posted by wackybrit at 12:42 PM PST - 10 comments

DVRFilter: I just picked up a TiVo TCD540040 and am [predictably] madly in love with it. I also have a 250GB EIDE drive laying around, and can figure no better use than upgrading this baby. I have read this great tutorial, but I have a problem -- my PC/Linux box died a great death a number of months ago, and now I have only my PowerBook (as well as a FireWire disk enclosure I could put the drive into). Have I any options for getting the TiVo to recognize the extra 250GB drive, without hunting down a friend with a PC and a spare drive bay?
posted by symphonik at 12:11 PM PST - 5 comments

I'm thinking about getting a minidisc player, since I like being able to switch playsets but don't have enough music for even an iPod mini. Research seems to indicate that the software was inconvenient and there were problems with copyrighted media - is this still the case? Are the high-density versions worth it?
posted by casarkos at 11:06 AM PST - 16 comments

Is there a Firefox extension that filters adult content a la IE's Content Advisor? I'm doing well at converting people to FF, but one colleague needs a content filter for his kids. Unless my Google-fu is badly broken, there doesn't seem to be one and, unless I'm very blind, FF doesn't have one by default. Mozilla update also brings blanks, but I can't believe that no-one's thought of building one yet.
posted by TheDonF at 8:28 AM PST - 12 comments

[IDM music filter] If you've ever watched an IDM group perform live, usually all they have is a laptop. What programs do they likely have running live performances? [MI] [more inside]
posted by EvilKenji at 4:39 AM PST - 18 comments

Online Consumer Fraud: Some time ago I purchased an imported Japanese GameCube game for someone on Buyritegames. However, I was stupid enough to be lured by its pricing on Froogle and did not check its reputation before hand. [More Inside] [more inside]
posted by christin at 3:05 AM PST - 12 comments

So I live in a tourist town in Florida. Every third shop in the main strip area sells hermit crabs. Well, one of these shops doesn't just sell hermit crabs, it sells HUGE hermit crabs. What I'm wondering is: has anyone ever eaten one? [+] [more inside]
posted by u.n. owen at 1:43 AM PST - 22 comments

I think I'm having vision trouble, but I can't tell...(MI) [more inside]
posted by Slimemonster at 10:45 PM PST - 14 comments

I want to buy one of those little cars I've seen in England and France and have it shipped to the United States. Is this legal? Are there companies or sites that do this? [more inside]
posted by stevis at 9:49 PM PST - 21 comments

SinoFilter: I'm looking for a scholarly-but-accessible book (or books) about Chinese history and culture. (Web site recommendations also welcome.) I have done some Googling and poking around amazon.com, but frankly my ignorance is so deep that I have no good way of evaluating the quality of what I'm finding.
posted by enrevanche at 8:09 PM PST - 16 comments

Now that 2004 is over, what things did you discover during the year—books, movies, art, philosophies, spiritual discoveries, travel opportunities, software, gadgets, products—which improved your life?
posted by dhoyt at 7:38 PM PST - 37 comments

YetAnotherLostKidsBookFilter: Since people have been so helpful with others, maybe you can help me. (MI) [more inside]
posted by SisterHavana at 7:36 PM PST - 6 comments

How do you get to bed on time? [MI] [more inside]
posted by Handcoding at 7:19 PM PST - 27 comments

I need some advice on a good bag for a bad back. I'm trying to find a high-volume weatherproof bag that I can use on my bike and on foot. What's the ergonomic word on backpacks vs. messenger bags? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by foxy_hedgehog at 5:57 PM PST - 23 comments

I'm a TypePad user, moving to Movable Type. I know that MT is much more powerful, but out of the (virtual) box, it is lacking in a lot of the cool features (book lists, photo albums, blogrolls) that TypePad has built in.

What's the best place for a n00b like me to go to start bringing MT into line with what I had in TypePad? I've been slogging through the MT Plugins site, but if there's an even easier guide out there, I'll gladly admit I'm an MT loser and just paint-by-numbers!
posted by baltimore at 5:39 PM PST - 11 comments

I inherited a metal table in the shop of our recently bought house. The table top is rusted but still solid. Is there any way I can make it look new and to protect the top from further rust? Or is there something I could attach to it, like non-slip rubber, that would make it last longer? [more inside]
posted by jasonspaceman at 5:24 PM PST - 11 comments

How much are you like or different from your immediate family and relatives? [MI] [more inside]
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 3:59 PM PST - 33 comments

A spammer is sending out spam using MY email address and name as the sender. I am getting hundreds of bounced emails now. Is there any way to stop this from continuing, or happening in the first place?
posted by bluno at 3:42 PM PST - 18 comments

Is there an easy way to pull out the shipping information from eBay? It seems that that's the way a lot of people buffer their low prices... Their shipping costs $10 for shipping that really costs $3.65 at the Post Office.
posted by ajpresto at 3:04 PM PST - 24 comments

Related to this question, what's a good way to find a qualified therapist, especially to look for help with depression? I don't actually have a personal physician (aside from the guy who's name is on my chart at the HMO).
posted by anonymous at 2:34 PM PST - 12 comments

ClickandClackFilter: My car will not start in wet weather. [+] [more inside]
posted by spicynuts at 1:58 PM PST - 25 comments

Has anyone framed a jigsaw puzzle before? [+] [more inside]
posted by mmascolino at 1:44 PM PST - 10 comments

What does orbesque mean?
posted by Count Ziggurat at 12:36 PM PST - 6 comments

Filmscanner 101. Is there any advantage to setting the *input* resolution for scans intended for monitor display to anything greater than 72dpi? The default input resolutions on my scanner vary with the dimensions selected for the output file. Bigger output files require higher input resolutions (from 704dpi to 1759dpi). As everything will be displayed at 72dpi, why not *scan* everything at 72dpi? It all looks the same to me on my screen.
posted by carter at 12:16 PM PST - 8 comments

ComputerMoronFilter: At my wits' end in battle against spyware. More desperate pleading inside.
posted by Miko at 12:13 PM PST - 28 comments

The Geico Caveman TV commercial.
Is it racist or just brilliant?
posted by Fupped Duck at 11:35 AM PST - 24 comments

I live in Northern NJ and like to stay out late in NYC. My problem is the train's latest return trip to NJ is at 137am. How can I get home later? Is there a PATH station that has ample parking at night? I'm new to the area and would appreciate the help. Thanks!
posted by seinfeld at 11:00 AM PST - 23 comments

Is it just a matter of time until spammers usurp the del.icio.us popular page? Or does social bookmarking by nature provide some kind of defense? [more inside]
posted by deshead at 10:45 AM PST - 7 comments

So I appear to be trapped in Paris. Flew to Europe over the holidays for a conference in Berlin, and thought I'd spend a week in Paris and fly out of there instead. British Airways is informing me they'd like about a grand to get me out of Paris, and no less if I take the chunnel up to London to catch the London-SFO leg there. Best option I've found is to try to delay the return flight until I can actually make my way back to Berlin (it's too late now). Still on hold finding out how painful that's going to be. Anyone have any better ideas?
posted by effugas at 10:23 AM PST - 8 comments

Wi-fi woes. My XP laptop connects to the Web on my open home network, but I've had problems connecting to other open networks elsewhere. [MORE INSIDE] [more inside]
posted by timnyc at 10:18 AM PST - 2 comments

Inspired by this thread, in which someone confessed to using the same pet name for her dog and boyfriend, I simply must know: What sick-making nicknames do y'all call your spouses, partners and kids?
posted by naomi at 9:29 AM PST - 67 comments

My sister gave me a lovely big pillar candle for Christmas. When I went to burn it last night, the wick burned off. There's a little tiny stub of a wick- I can light it, but it only burns a small blue flame. Can this candle be saved?
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 9:07 AM PST - 7 comments

I have several thousand html files that I need to edit, basically removing a block of text from each. Does anyone know a Windows app (preferably free) that will mass-edit a folder of files?
posted by kickerofelves at 8:14 AM PST - 12 comments

CSSFilter: I'm a long-time Web wonk looking to become a CSS maven - my next gig is the development and implementation of a completely modern, table-less design for a fairly big company.

What learning resources out there (on the Web, in print, or otherwise) are the best for someone looking to master the techniques espoused by places like the CSS Zen Garden? What new tools should I consider using? One thing I'm having trouble with in particular: how does the designer mock up a fully CSS/XHTML design? It seems more counterintuitive than the old process of design -> cut-up into table-based layout.
posted by killdevil at 8:10 AM PST - 20 comments

[CameraFilter] I have a Pentax K1000. The last two rolls of film I've gotten developed (a generic-brand ISO 200 and a Fuji ISO 100) have had a major problem - the first couple of pictures turn out alright, then the last couple of pictures, but everything in between is overexposed. My first thought was a light leak when I changed lenses, but then I realized an earlier roll came out just fine, and I'd used different lenses on it. Any ideas?
posted by emmling at 5:28 AM PST - 19 comments

I'm in college in the U.S., and have a few state student loans. They were under a forebearance that I once requested, which ended four months ago. I didn't realize this, and ignored the mail that was sent about it because I thought it was the usual mail they send me about how I have a loan and ads for consolidation. I just recently got this fixed and the forebearance backdated so it will have another year from when it ended. But I now have two 60-day late marks on my otherwise good credit report. Anything I can do to get rid of them?
posted by anonymous at 1:18 AM PST - 5 comments

It's taken me years to realize it, but depression has made an impact on my life I just can't ignore any more. I have come out of it often enough to know it's really worth licking. But it seems I spend 3/4 of my year or more grumpy, lazy, and increasingly empty-feeling. The lazyness is the killer, actually. I have lots of things I do to feel better, but I'd like to check out clinical treatment options, too, as I feel I've reached the limit of simple diet and lifestyle remedies. I have no idea where to begin. If anyone here has been treated for chronic mild depression I'd appreciate advice on what I can do. Thanks Meta!
posted by anonymous at 1:18 AM PST - 53 comments

Does anyone have any secrets for finding vacation rentals? My family and I are trying to plan a trip to Va Beach or Nags Head, for the first week in June... I can search google and find all the rental sites, but I'd really like perhaps a site that might do searches for both locations and return the results on one page... or insider information, hopefully from people that live in that area, or do it frequently.
posted by TuxHeDoh at 8:22 PM PST - 7 comments

Generational filter: I am trying to apply an age/birth year range to the following generations: Boomers, GenX, GenY, Nexter. I find conflicting information when I google. [mi] [more inside]
posted by suchatreat at 8:13 PM PST - 45 comments

Help! My webmaster's out of town and I don't know how to do this.... [more inside]
posted by mudpuppie at 4:59 PM PST - 9 comments

Is there a way to sort del.icio.us links by order of overall popularity? For example, I know if I go to del.icio.us/popular/css/ it will show me recently popular links with the css tag, but what I'd really like is to sort all the css links in descending order of number of people linking to the link. Is this possible?
I googled with variations of "sort|order popular del.icio.us links" but did not come up with anything remotely like what I was going for.
posted by achmorrison at 2:48 PM PST - 7 comments

Are there any websites written entirely in Jamaican English?
posted by reklaw at 2:40 PM PST - 18 comments

PacketFilter: (Ha! Double entendre!) I need to set up a firewall/router box for a client because their Linksys router isn't doing what they need anymore. [More past the firewall] [more inside]
posted by SpecialK at 2:33 PM PST - 10 comments

CatFilter-- What is the deal with anise and cats? Is it like catnip? [more inside]
posted by fabesfaves at 1:51 PM PST - 18 comments

How can out-of-town friends help someone undergoing cancer treatment? [+] [more inside]
posted by savetheclocktower at 1:43 PM PST - 11 comments

Looking for a camcorder. [mi] [more inside]
posted by karen at 1:12 PM PST - 13 comments

Access database problems... [more inside]
posted by benjh at 1:01 PM PST - 10 comments