Author: Andy Labis

What Would You Consider More Secure: A Fax, An Email, or the U.S. Mail?

The other day I needed to request some documentation. I was given two options: Via normal U.S. mail or via fax. This being 2013 I was a little perplexed, and the options seemed very much like the 1990’s. I inquired: “Can’t I get it sent to me by email?” The nice lady on the phone said, “No, we only consider the mail and faxes secure, so we don’t send anything by email.” As I sat there in almost utter amazement at the lack of an email option, my head started to try and process the securedness of all three options.

The mail – On average I probably get one piece of mail every couple of months that is meant for someone else, which always makes me wonder what of my mail never makes it to me, and are the people who receive my mail nice enough to either bring it over if it’s a neighbor, or throw it back in the mail? Also, who hasn’t seen the TV show where someone gets something by mail, only to have their wife “steam” the envelope open to see what it is, and then reseal it?

The fax – Having done like many folks, we’ve given up our land line months ago, and with that the multi-functioness of the multi-function printer diminished by one as faxing becomes moot. Sure, the fax sitting in the home is pretty secure if you are sitting right next to it, patiently waiting for the fax to arrive, but in an office setting, where you may have your faxes delivered to you by an underling, how is that very secure?

The email – Sure, we all know the government and your email provider is probably spying on you, but what else is new? And fine, maybe if you have an email sent to a work account your IT guy is seeing that you like jokes about dogs, but if I have something sent to a private email, and then can print it so that I can directly have the piece of paper in my hand, I’m thinking maybe a little more secure.

Looking for some expediency instead of security I opted for the fax, having it sent to someone I could sort of trust, and hoping they wouldn’t wonder “Why is The Dude getting jokes about dogs faxed to him?” My dog jokes fixation aside, I plight: What would you consider more secure: A fax, an email, or the U.S. Mail?

That’s it for this plight! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

 

Koch

MPAA Rated – Unrated
It’s 1:35 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Koch
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Ed Koch, and others.
MPAA Rated: Not Rated
Released By: Zeitgeist Films
Released On: August 27, 2013
Kiddie Movie: They’d be bored unless they want to be Mayor someday.
Date Movie: Only if she likes documentaries.
Gratuitous Sex: Nothing gratuitious, but there is discussion about the AIDS epidemic.
Gratuitous Violence: Nah.
Action: Nah.
Laughs: Some of the commentary.
Memorable Scene: For whaterver reason I like when Ed Koch is driving through Times Square and say…
Memorable Quote: “I’ve never been to a Red Lobster.”
Directed By: Neil Barsky

Released August 27th on iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, Playstation, Xbox, YouTube, Google, Cable VOD, and DVD

Love him or hate him, Ed Koch left a legacy in New York that changed much of how some things were done in the city, and of course, left many questions as to just how much he played the corruption game to maintain power. The documentary “Koch” doesn’t give a ton of answers to questions about the man, but it does give a fairly balanced look at the good he accomplished, as well as not shy away from the scandal and seeming “old-school” attitude that plagued what could have been a man everyone could love.

The documentary begins showing Ed Koch in his early days, more liberal in his attitude, and we can begin to see the shift to more of a mix of business than liberalism, although it would seem if helping people could make a buck, and keep people loving him, he was all for it. There are a ton of clips of life back in New York City in the 70’s to the late 80’s, helping to show how he kept working the system, as he says “It’s theatrics. Everyone has a role.” And he seemed to know what his role was even to his death in February of 2013, throwing his support and endorsements to whomever he seemed to like, much to the dismay of some of them.

If there is anything about Ed Koch it is that the man didn’t hold back an opinion, even if it seemed to cross a line or two, and the documentary doesn’t sugarcoat his opinion. A great example of this is during a family gathering we hear him talking about the proposed mosque to be built near the site of the World Trade Center attacks. He’s got his opinion, and you’re not likely to change it, even with some seeming rational comparisons.

There are some nice moments in the film, showing a side where even setting up his gravesite we see a form a narcissism, but I suppose for the role that was needed in New York City when he took over, that narcissism was necessary to get things done. We see instances where he appears racist, sexist, and homophobic, but as one man explained in the movie, “He’s not a racist; He’s an opportunist, and that’s worse than being racist.” I don’t know about it being worse, but the documentary did show that he was able to shift a view on a dime if it seemed like it would keep him in power. And liked.

There are things I forgot about Ed Koch, and not being from New York City he’s not as an iconic figure in my life as a Mayor Daley in Chicago. They both have their faults, but if there is one thing true to both of them it is that they love their City with all of their soul.

You almost feel bad when, while watching the documentary, the corruption scandals hit, because you want to believe he had nothing to do with them, and those around him tarnished any good he accomplished. Such is politics, though, and I think Ed Koch knew this. What he did know, or at least wanted to make sure people knew, is that he loved New York City, loved its people (I’m guessing at least most of them), and loved the United States. How do I know this? Because he wrote it on his tombstone.

I balanced look at Ed Koch is how I would portray “Koch,” and I didn’t really fade as I was watching it, especially as it took me back to those late 70’s and 80’s, and vaguely remembering stories of a mayor that rode the subway. It’s 4 stars out of 5 for “Koch.” If you want a fair look at the man, it’s probably worth the hour and a half of your time.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Have you Tweeted a Correction to an Earlier Tweet?

I would like to think my answer to today’s plight would be in the affirmative, but I honestly can’t remember if I’ve ever tweeted out a correction. Thankfully, though, with yesterday’s plight about not being able to watch the MTV VMA’s I didn’t reference the Will Smith family reaction to Miley Cyrus, you know, the picture that went viral of a seemingly disgusted, lovely family moment, supposedly watching Miley Cyrus at the awards. The problem was, this tweet,originally attributed to @chi_chibaby in most stories, (I received a retweet in my Twitter feed to it) wasn’t actually the family reacting to Miley, it was their reaction to Lady Gaga. @chi_chibaby went on the defensive when word started spreading she was wrong instead of just saying something like “My bad,” MTV seemingly stated in a follow-up story it was a picture coinciding with Lady Gaga, I’m guessing Lady Gaga was upset because the viral picture that could have kept her at least a little relevant for the awards was mis-attributed, and then there is the part of me that wonders where the original picture came from because I’m thinking it was poached from another source and the original poster is like “Hey, what about my retweets and new followers?”

Oh well. As talk of Miley Cyrus’ performance will quickly go away especially as, I’m sure, we have our next Lohan/Kardashian/Bynes story to take its place, at least until next year’s VMA when we will be reminded of all of the “outrageous” moments as some sort of publicity campaign for MTV, I’m glad I didn’t fall into the trap of misinformation. Many did, I’m guessing 99% of those didn’t tweet out any type of correction, and I’m plighting: Have you tweeted a correction to an earlier tweet?

That’s it for this plight! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Did You Try to Watch the MTV VMA’s Online?

So it’s a Sunday night, and I find myself not being able to watch MTV on TV and remember it’s the night of the VMA’s. That’s right, the Video Music Awards. What am I to do? How am I to catch the likes of a Lady Gaga, a Katy Perry, a rumored *nsync reunion complete with Justin Timberlake? As I have a decent internet connection I do some quick online searching and every news story seems to say that MTV will have a live stream of the VMA’s, and I thought, “Sweet! I’ll just watch the show online!” I head to the MTV.com site, there is some kind of All Access feed, and I’m ready for some awards! “Hmm? This is peculiar.”, I think to myself, “Did I click the right feed? All I’m getting are these weird camera views that I could care less about. What the hell is this Stage Manager cam? I don’t care about the audience. Where’s my Gaga?!?!?” I try again. And again. And because I keep thinking I’m clicking something wrong I head back to some of the news stories that had links to the VMA feed. I click. I get the same feed of everything except the actual awards, only in the corner of the video is a view of the awards, but no sound, saying to watch on MTV.

All I can now think is that MTV either screwed up their feed online, or they did a great job of hoodwinking every news outlet, saying they were going to have a live feed of the VMA’s, but not explaining that it won’t actually be a feed of the show, but rather feeds of camera views no one really cares about, unless, of course, Will Smith was caught picking his nose on the Audience cam.

And so it was a night when I realized why I really don’t like MTV any longer. I guess, mostly, it’s because they don’t show music videos like they actually used to, and that they haven’t had a decent TV show in years, but thankfully the company Vevo is starting to take over the video market, and actually show me everything from a Gaga, to Iggy Pop.

The press people for MTV did a great job at getting people to actually go to their site to watch the VMA’s. I’m thinking they also did a great job at pissing off 99% of the people who went to their site actually trying to watch the VMA’s. Either way, I’m plighting: Did you try to Watch the MTV VMA’s Online?

That’s it for this plight! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Do You Prefer a Sunrise or a Sunset?

Sunrise over the Springbrook Prairie Forest PreserveThis morning I have to admit I was a little selfish, at least when it came to Milo getting a walk. It was a gorgeous morning and knowing Milo wouldn’t be up for about a 6 mile walk, I decided it was going to be a walk for me. So I let Milo sleep in, headed to the Springbrook Prairie Forest Preserve in Naperville, and found out they officially open one hour after sunrise. Crap! Lucky for me the golf course is right across from the entrance so I risked getting towed and/or arrested by the park ranger, and hoofed it over to the trail. I hadn’t been to the trail in a few years, and I doubt things would have changed much, and on this I was correct. However, I had never gone for a walk there first thing in the morning, as the sun was rising, the dew was still on the prairie grass and hanging on the spider webs, complete with a light blanket of fog creating a sometimes eerie feeling to the trail, and risking getting trampled by a bunch of runners from the local high school.

It was nice.

So I took a few pictures, had my music blasting in my headphones, and surprised myself by making the five and a half mile loop in about an hour and a half (I could have beaten the hour and a half mark had I not taken some pictures, but that’s alright – next time!), which was probably about an hour and a half quicker than I could have made the loop about five years ago. I know, because I did it the loop about five years ago, and I guess losing the forty or fifty pounds since then really helped because I was actually tempted to go for loop #2. Alas, it was time to head back home as I figured shooting for about a half-marathon walk might not be the best of ideas, yet, and maybe in the short term the goal will be to get walk under the hour and a half mark.

As I was walking, though, it occurred to me that I think I’m now more of a sunrise person. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good sunset every now and then, but like the Augustana song “Boston”, I think I need a sunrise, I’m tired of the sunset. And so I plight: Do you prefer a sunrise or a sunset?

That’s it for this plight! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Have You Posted a Review in an App Store?

I have a few apps in the Apple app store. For a shameless plug, head to the App Store and check them out. It’s kind of a hobby. Some people collect stamps, others go bowling (That went away for me with my “bowler’s knee” as I call it), while I play around with some iPhone app development. I am a geek, I suppose.

I only bring this up because I’m also a fan of apps, and a fan, usually, of when apps get updated, but it always boggles my mind when updating, or rather full redesigns occur, and there doesn’t seem to be any real testing of the core features of the app, or understanding the repercussions of changing an app. One app I regularly use is called Remember the Milk, and about a year ago they did a full redesign. I originally didn’t like the redesign, but much like Facebook changing things, if it’s something we use all of the time, and we like the core concept, we’ll get used to it, and eventually I got over it and am still a fan of the app. The thing was, in the end, it worked like it was supposed to.

There were updates to two app recently that for whatever reason I keep following the slew of 1 star comments on. The first is for a local grocery store, Jewel-Osco, that recently changed ownership. Their old app had a function where you could reorder your prescription, which I guess was easier than using the automated phone feature, but what do I know because my prescription is on auto-refill so they just call me every month and say my pills are ready. The new app took away the prescription reordering feature and people are livid. Comments of the app being useless now, comments of why they changed it, comments of they suck, and out of 52 ratings there are 2 at five stars, 1 at three stars, 1 at two stars, and 48 at one star of people upset they can’t refill their pills any longer with the app.

The other app I regularly use is called OverDrive Media Console. It’s used mostly to read digital version of library books. They, too, recently did a full re-design of their app, and again, people don’t like it. Sure, there are some that don’t like the new look, although most see to be able to get over it. The problem with their redesign is that this is one they didn’t seem to do much testing on as some of the core functionality that was present in the old version, namely touching the end of the screen to change a page, or the page changing at a relatively normal speed, are gone. Complaints about slow page turning, about having to “swipe” to turn the page which then sometimes causes the sidebar to appear instead of turning the page, and about how audiobook listening is practically non-functional, among others, seem to be the majority of the complaints. The interesting thing I find, though, is that the OverDrive folks seem to have a slew of people posting questionable reviews because along with the 81 ratings of one star, pretty much saying the new version sucks, there are 47 votes of five stars with reviews stating that this is the best app, ever.

I’m not sure why, but things like this fascinate me.

I get a few reviews for my apps. Nothing crazy, some people like them, some don’t, but I always do my best to at least make sure any revisions are functional, and test updates on everything from my iPhone version 1 to the latest one out there just to know how slow/fast/if things work things are. Sometimes, though, I think testers are only on the latest and greatest device and forget that there are thousands of users still on older devices, and they are probably going to piss them off. Now, I haven’t submitted any ratings for apps, nor reviews, although I am tempted to write one for the OverDrive app as I’m having the same problem as the 81 people who now hate the app, but with my thought to post a review, I plight: Have you posted a review in an app store?

That’s it for this plight! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

 

To The Wonder

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:53 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

To The Wonder
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Ben Afleck, Olga Kurylenko, Rachel McAdams, Javier Bardem
MPAA Rated: R
Released By: Magnolia Home Entertainment
Release Date: August 6, 2013
Kiddie Movie: They’d be bored. Send them to bed.
Date Movie: They’d also be bored. Send them to bed.
Gratuitous Sex: It’s got some.
Gratuitous Violence: Neil and Marina get in some fights.
Action: Nope.
Laughs: Nope.
Memorable Scene: Only memorable because there was so much of it: The frolicking.
Memorable Quote: None.
Directed By: Terrence Malick
On the Blu-Ray: You get some “Making of…”, Actors stuff, dancing stuff, and some other extras.

As I was watching “To The Wonder,” all I could keep thinking was that had Neil (Ben Affleck) just bought some furniture for his house, maybe he wouldn’t have had all of the problems with his new love, Marina (Olga Kurylenko). Okay, I was also trying to think of something nice to say about the film.

I guess I’ll start with the story…

For “To The Wonder” we get Neil. He’s in France and meets a beautiful woman, Marina, and her daughter. They fall in love, and what does Marina do? Of course she pulls up stakes and moves to Oklahoma. Yes, the wonders of Paris to Oklahoma. Does anyone actually think the couple would have a chance at succeeding? As the movie plays out we get to see a happy couple, a couple who isn’t so happy, a happy couple, a couple who isn’t so happy, a dude going to work and testing soil or something, a couple who isn’t so happy, and a priest who seems confused. Oh, yea, did I mention there is also a priest, Father Quintana (Javier Bardem), who seems to have lost his faith and is somehow part of the movie, but doesn’t seem to play that big a role?

Yes, the movie is about love and all of its factors, but it’s also a movie that seems to show there is no chance at love, at least for the two main characters, and it’s an artsy film about love, with a lot of Marina frolicking through the fields of Oklahoma, a lot of Marina dancing around in ballet moves, even Rachel McAdams as Jane, Neil’s old girlfriend, coming into the picture and she’s spinning and frolicking. All along it also seems like a great role for Ben Affleck as he seemed to have relatively few lines to learn with most of the commentary by Marina in French (Yup, that means you’ll also spend a lot of the movie reading it), as well as Father Quintana commentarying in Spanish (again, more reading for you, the viewer).

Yes, there are people who will like this movie, just not me, and definitely not my wife as, when it ended, she pretty much wanted to give it zero stars for wasting her time. Me, I’m not so critical, seeing some of the artsy ways the movie was working, but even for me, and I can normally try to appreciate an art-house type of film, even this one had me saying things like “Again with the dancing,” and while looking at the interior of Neil’s place wondering why he just doesn’t let Marina do some shopping for some furniture. There are other, better movies about love, I would give this one about 2 stars, but I’ll average things with my wife and end up with 1 star out of 5 for “To The Wonder.” I guess the key if you will like the movie is knowing what to expect, so if you expect frolicking, talking, and reading (unless you understand French and Spanish), you might like it, but for most everyone else you might just wonder how Ben Affleck became involved.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Are Smartphones Getting Too Big?

Back in the day I managed a Radio Shack in lovely Rantoul, IL. It was a nice store, near the Chanute Air Force Base that was eventually closed, and at the time cell phones weren’t small. Yes, they sold a truly portable phone, but down there in the country cell phone towers weren’t nearly as prevalent as they are today, and whenever someone came in hoping to buy the small phone I had to tell them that most of the time the phone wouldn’t work, the cell phone signal was too week, so in order to have the protection and convenience a cell phone could give they really needed to have a bag phone. They were sad. They wanted small. They wanted something they could put in their pocket. They wanted cool even if it cost them a few dollars more, and they couldn’t afford it.

Oddly there seems to be a bizarre shift in the cell phone world, back to big, at least you would think so if you check out some of the headlines, especially the latest from USA Today: “New 6.3-inch Samsung phone approaches tablet size.” Yes, the convenience and protection of a cell phone is getting back to needing a bag to carry it with the Samsung Galaxy Mega!

Me, I’m an Apple guy and love the fact that they haven’t gone crazy with trying to make a phablet, as it would be. Not that they might not in the future, but I like that my phone fits in my pocket and for the larger stuff, i.e the video viewing, book reading, and immersive games, there is the iPad or the iPad Mini. Is it that hard to carry both? While I understand the desire for people to have everything all-in-one as it would be, I also feel there is a convenience factor for the idea of a phone. To me it seems practical enough: It makes calls, I can check email, I can read a book if I really wanted to, I can watch a movie, I can play games, and I can take pictures or video without looking like a doofus holding up what amounts to something the size of a sheet of paper blocking the view of those behind me so I can get a lousy picture of Rick Springfield at the country fair. On that note, I believe there are two kinds of people: Those that use their iPad sized device to take pictures and video, and those that make fun of the people using their iPad sized device to shoot pictures and video.

People made fun of the iPad when it came out, mocking it’s size, pretending to hold it up to their head like an iPhone to make phone calls even though the device wasn’t a phone. Oddly enough some smartphones are getting to be exactly that size, and people will look exactly like those in the pictures when making a call. For me, bigger is not always better, at least in terms of my cell phone. I like the convenience, I like the protection, and I like that it fits in my pocket. So, with that, as the world eagerly awaits Apple to announce their new iPhone 5S and 5C in the coming weeks, the thing we do know is it won’t be a phone the size of a tablet. Maybe Apple is behind the curve on this one and people want an iPad they can hold up to their head, make a phone call, and carry in a bag? I guess retro might really be in this year! Welcome back, bag phone!

Alright, enough rambling, let’s get to the plight: Are smartphones getting too big?

That’s it for this plight! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Have You Used a Dot Matrix Printer Before?

Last weekend was the Air and Water Show in Chicago. This year I took a pass, although I have been to a few in the past, and I will always say that the best day, as long as the weather is nice, is on the Friday before, for the practice show, which is really just a dry-run of the full show. Alas, though, this year, thanks to the government sequester, government funding for cool stuff, like the Air Force Thunderbirds and Navy Blue Angels, has been cut, and therefore those acts were cut from the show. Most people still say the show was fun, but I’m guessing it just wasn’t the same as there is something about the jets that is just awesome.

But what does this have to do with a dot matrix printer?

Well, let me tell you.

In the week leading up to the Air and Water Show the local newscasts all have some kind of special interest story about the show. In the past there is always some reporter allowed to tag along with the Thunderbirds or Blue Angels, and they try not to barf in the cockpit, but without the big boys this year the news folks were relegated to talking about, well, the boring acts, or at least the “Not as exciting as barfing in the cockpit” acts. As I was watching the report, they were interviewing a guy from the Geico Skytypers, and the gentleman was explaining how skytyping is different from skywriting, in that for skywriting you have one plane doing loops and fun things drawing words and figures in the sky, but for skytyping they can do a lot more like spell out the word “Geico” and draw a flag. Okay, he didn’t really say the part about the flag, I picked that up from their website, but the thing he did mention is that skytyping is like printing things on a dot matrix printer, to which I instantly thought, “How many kids, who, well, might actually be watching the news, just said ‘Dad, what’s a dot matrix printer?'”

Me, I remember the dot matrix printer, trying to feed ribbon in the printer, and how noisy they were no matter how many things you tried to use to muffle the sound, but in this era of the inkjet (based on the same concept of the dot matrix), and the laser printer, I’m wondering, and so I’m plighting: Have you used a dot matrix printer before?

That’s it for this plight! I’m The Dude on the Right!! Bring back the Thunderbirds and Blue Angles!!! L8R!!!

Have You Ever had Apple Pie and Cheddar Cheese Together?

Over the weekend I was introduced to a combination I thought had no chance of working, apple pie and cheddar cheese. I’m not sure why, but in my head it just seems weird, but I was assured it would be tasty. With dinner complete, and a slight rest for some movie watching, it was time now for dessert, and I was presented with a small plate with a slice of apple pie, some small, slices of cheddar cheese on the side, and of course a scoop of ice cream. I was instructed to take a forkful of the apple pie, bite off a piece of the cheese, and eat it together. Now, as I’m a speed-eater, I had to be reminded as I took the forkful of apple pie that I was to eat them together and not just swallow the pie and then eat the cheese, so I did what I was told and low and behold, some interesting tastiness erupted in my mouth.

I’m not good at describing culinary tastes so I’m not going to try to expand with something like “The sharpness of the cheddar complimented the sweetness of the apple pie, nicely.” or “The flakiness of the crust combined with the chewiness of the cheese created a glop of a tasty blob in the mouth.” Instead I’m going with “It was tasty!”

So, my recommendation for the next time you have apple pie is to have a block of sharp, cheddar cheese on hand, and with your mouthful of pie, eat some cheese. You might be surprised. And yes, the ice cream was good, too!

It sounds like a weird combination, and as I can now answer “Yes. It was tasty!”, I’ve got to plight: Have you ever had apple pie and cheddar cheese together?

That’s it for this plight! I”m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!