Sunday, February 26, 2017

Goodreads Review : Laura Carstensen : A Bright Long Future **000

Another massive waste of time.. a couple of shreds of useful info here and there.

One of those that should be about 20 pages (if that) long for the useful info it has... Sad case..

Shame on the Stanford Center for Longevity for putting this one out.

+ : Learn bridge. Start playing freecell.
+ : Socialize!
+ : Learn a 2nd language when you're a kid - it'll keep your brain in good shape when you're old

Saturday, February 25, 2017

Tragic End to a Blossoming Career

At least someone tried to be a hero. I have a friend who said many years ago 33 is a good age to die because that was the age Jesus died at. My thought : Jeezus!

https://www.gofundme.com/a645d-ians-road-to-recovery

Home Buying Check List


  1. Like a house. Don't love it.
  2. Talk to the potential new neighbours - write them a letter as soon as possible saying that you're considering the house and if they had anything they advice for you? (In Kim's case, the neighbours had seen the flippers slapping on the stucco on the old stucco)
  3. Play the podcast for your buyer's agent and the home-inspectors!
  4. Ask the specific questions :



  • If the foundation were rotting, how would you know?
  • If there is risk of slippage, how would you know?
  • If there is risk of sinkage, how would you know?
  • What are some no-no's with roofing? If one of them exists, how would you know? If spanish tile has been patched together with roofing tar, how would thee know?

Worst Case Scenario : California Home Nightmare

Kim bought a house in the Los Angeles Northridge/Reseda/San Fernando area and.. (up and coming neighbourhood, near a great one that a lot of NYers were moving to) ($560k in 2015. Kim was moving back. Man! 560k for a house built in 1929!)

(they moved from NY to LA thinking they could take advantage of simpleton southerners, without realizing the southwest ain't exactly the south.. ha ha.. just kidding folks.. read on)

The stucco : was brand new. But, once the recent heavy rains started, it started cracking and so bad that they were sure it was going to fall off. Attorney brings a GC (general contractor) who confirms the stucco was just slapped on top of the old stucco! A ha!

Lesson learnt : The podcast is 5 min long. Keep it handy on your phone and play it the first time your meet your home-inspector and buyer's agent. Ask your home inspector the specific question - if this is what they did, how would you find out about it?

Then, attorney says, sure, stucco bad, but foundation worse - it's rotting and slipping. Right-hand front corner has sunk 0.5" since moving in. Pillar and post foundation - a problem had been pointed out and seller had "shored up" that part of the foundation. (wha?)

Roof has leaked.. roofers say - no good, spanish tiles have been patched together with roofing tar - a no - no.

Spending an additional $6k. Wha? What's that compared to 560k?

This house survived the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

Mark Hammerich (new Washington DC bureau chief at bankrate.com ) :

common problem? when housing mkts heat up, strange things heat up :) If bartenders in Florida are in the real-estate game, that's never a good sign.

what to do? First, are you sure it's safe to even live there? Q Fottrell says stay and fight. Sounds like the sellers were flippers. Get em!
MH : report to LA department of homeowners affairs. He asked Holden and that guy said to walk away because litigation can take over your life - you get emotionally attached.

Kim's letter to WSJ says she thought it was worth $700k. Based on current valuation, says $600k. Houses down the street on smaller lots but higher square footage with almost no work done to them have been netting $650k. Sweet.

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Heutes Wissen

Aus Carl Selinger.. good stuff

Effectiveness is more important than efficiency. I obsess over efficiency - I want to get my setup right so that I get the job done with the least effort. But, it's better to deliver on time even if you have to work a few extra hours to get it done with the inefficient setup. That is - don't prioritize working on the setup.. You can do that later. Credit to me - I'll put in the extra hours ahead of time to get the setup right so I can be efficient. But, I never thought about this.. When other people have to get stuff done and come to me for help, I usually give them grief about their crappy setups that are sapping their efficiency...

Use breadcrumbs *all* the time (as Greg Wilson would say, make sure you can trace everything back to source!) - sure, you practise good self-management by keeping track of what you do and change. How about when you tweak someone else's setup and they later come back saying something's broken? In future - keep track of every change there as well! Tell them, that if stuff acts funny, "use your phone to take video", "capture screenshots". People may not be as smart or evince as much initiative as you. Take that into account!

Thanks Carl : There's a difference between doing things and getting things done :)

Dealing with difficult people : don't avoid them; be assertive; monitor closely to get things done

Monday, February 20, 2017

A Little Knowledge Is a ..

What happens when you give people the how but now the why :

Caroline Buckey :

git config --global core.editor "'' -n -w"

Where the -n -w is meant for sublime, not git, though you'd never guess... Tough call here... She and Sarah have done a great job with the Udacity GIT course.

Thankfully, simple Googling was able to nail it..

git config --global core.editor "'C:/Program Files (x86)/Notepad++/notepad++.exe' -multiInst -notabbar -nosession -noPlugin"

Better GIT Bash Prompt Formatting than Caroline's

If you set background to white, you might be okay, but, if you prefer the night theme, like I do, you might prefer bold blue :

bolblue="\[\033[01;34m\]"

# Change command prompt
source ~/git-prompt.sh
export GIT_PS1_SHOWDIRTYSTATE=1
# '\u' adds the name of the current user to the prompt
# '\$(__git_ps1)' adds git-related stuff
# '\W' adds the name of the current directory
export PS1="$purple\u$green\$(__git_ps1)$bolblue \W $ $reset"

Ohne Version Kontrol Ist Man Nichts, Gar Nichts

Yikes, wanted to get a hotkey I had at work on my home PC and pasted the AHK script over the one I had and.. next thing I know... hibernate no work... Wasn't terribly hard to restore thankfully.

Wizmo power! Thank you Steve Gibson.

C:\Tools\wizmo hibernate

Friday, February 17, 2017

Greenblatt Was Right - ROE Is King

True, a rising tide lifts all boats and we look for evidence that confirms our hypothesis..

His magic formula told me to buy Cisco and Capella. I wish I had.

He called out Viacom as well - which is poised nicely right now.. ;-)

Thursday, February 16, 2017

Steve Skiena and Mobiletainment : Data Structure Tradeoffs

Fn \ Struct
Unsorted
Array
Value-Indexed
Array
Sorted
Array
Unsorted Singly
  Linked-List
Sorted Singly
 Linked-List
Unsorted Doubly
 Linked-List
Sorted Doubly
 Linked-List
Balanced
 Binary Tree
Heap
Hash Table
Search
O(n)
O(1)
O(log n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(log n)
O(n)
O(1)
Insert
O(1)
O(1)
O(n)
O(1)
O(n)
O(1)
O(n)
O(log n)
O(log n)
O(1)
Delete
O(1)
O(1)
O(n)
O(n)*
O(n)*
O(1)
O(1)
O(log n)
O(n)
O(1)
Successor
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(1)
Predecessor
O(n)
O(n)*
O(n)
O(1)
Min
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(1)
Max
O(n)
O(1)*
O(n)
O(1)
Space Usage
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)
O(n)




Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Mitchell Harper : How to Identify A Players In the Interview

Q1: Have they been promoted at least once in a previous role?

A-players are great at what they do and good managers will pick up on that fast, offering them more responsibility and eventually a more challenging role. Look at their LinkedIn profile and see if, at any of their previous companies, they’ve been promoted. Once is great, twice is amazing and three times is out of this world.

Q2: Have they had to lead a big project in a previous role? How did they handle it?

A-players like to take on more responsibility over time, not less. Have they had a previous manager that was so confident in their abilities that they were given a large or important project to run on their own?

Q3: Is this the same role as a previous job or is it somewhat/completely different?

A-players love challenges. I found that most A-players don’t change companies so much as they change roles — because they like the challenge of constantly learning new things and being in new situations.

Q4: Can they speak about your company and tell you what they like and what they might change?

A-players do research on a company before an interview. They try to understand your strategy, what’s going well and even what’s not. Can they clearly articulate what they like about your company but also provide some constructive feedback on something you might want to change?

If they don’t know what your company does or they have no opinion (positive or negative) about it, that’s a red flag.

Q5: Are they confident without being cocky?

This is a fine line. A-players have great track records and you want someone who talks a lot about being on great teams and having great managers and mentors, not someone constantly saying “I this, I that”.

Q6: Are they committed to continual learning? Can they prove it?

A-players love learning new skills. Ask them what they learned in their previous role. Ask which book they’re currently reading. Ask what they plan to learn in the next 6–12 months and how they’ll go about doing that.

Q7: How would you rate the quality and quantity of questions they ask YOU during the interview?

Sunday, February 05, 2017

Alexa Joke Database

FYI, you can ask for "bad joke" "stupid joke" "dumb joke" "political joke". You can't ask for blonde jokes..

Mostly lame, but there are a few gems
What did the shy Pebble wish?
Just that she'd be a little boulder (2x)


What do you call Paul Revere's sketches?
Yankee Doodles

What do you call a kid who doesn't believe in Santa?
A rebel without a Claus (3x)

What did the duck say when buying lipstick? Put it on my bill. (2x)

Want to hear a dirty joke? A boy fell in some mud. How about a clean joke? He had a shower.

How do you make a tissue dance? Put a little boogie in it. (5x)

What do you call a pig that does karate? Pork chop.

Why did the pencil shave? It wanted to look sharp (jeez).

Which day do Canadian chickens hate the most? Friday?

Why do elephants paint their toenails red? To hide in cherry trees.

Why did the raisin go to the dance with a prune? Because he didn't have a date.

Why did Santa have to cancel karaoke night? Too many elvish impersonators.

My dad is an elevator operator. He says the business has its ups and downs.

I know a guy addicted to brake fluid. He insists he can stop anytime.

What do you call a potato wearing glasses? A spec-tator.

Why did the rabbit hop? No bunny knows. (2x)

A termite walks into a bar and asks: "Is the bar tender here?"

What's brown and sticky? A stick

Did you hear about the restaurant on the moon? Great food, but no atmosphere.

A jumper cable walks into a bar and asks for a beer. The bartender says, "Okay, but don't start anything."

Why are elephants wrinkled? Have you ever tried to iron one? (2x)

Why is feedback a gift? You can always return it.

What do you call a person with no body and just a nose? No body knows.

Did you hear the one about the man who failed to climb a hill without a watch? He had neither the time nor the inclination. (2x)

Music is coming out of the printer. I think the paper's jamming again. (3x)

The electron asked the photon, "did you pack your suitcase?" "No," the photon replied, "I'm travelling light." (2x)

How many ears does Captain Kirk have? Three - his left ear, his r e and his final front ear.

What type of weather do zombies like the most? Cloudy with a chance of brain. (2x)

Where does a polar bear keep its money? In a snowbank!

What did one flag say to the other? Nothing, it just waved.

Why did the zombie turn in early? He was dead tired.

I attended a very emotional wedding recently. Even the cake was in tiers. (try telling this one).

My first ride in an elevator was quite uplifting. The second time was a letdown.

What kind of tea did the American colonists thirst for? Liberty. (2x)

What do you get if you cross a kangaroo with a sheep? A woolly jumper.

Why did the zombie go after the CEO? He was interested in eating the brains of the operation.

How do you count cattle? With a cowculator. (2x) Really? They must take into account that most people using the kindle are the kids when the parents aren't watching. Shame on AMZN.

What happened to the cat who at a ball of yarn? She had mittens.

How do you make a hot dog stand? Take away its chair.

What do you call an American revolutionary who draws cartoons? Yankee doodler. (2x)

Why did the pirate dislike the pacifist who refused to go to sea? Because he was a lubber, not a fighter. (2x)

What do you call a cow with three legs? Lean beef.

What did the school say to the playground about the first day of school? I'll be there with bells on.

Why was the strawberry crying? Because it got in a jam. (2x)

What's the tallest building in town? The library. It has the most stories.

What's a dog's favourite instrument? A trombone.

How did the telephone propose to his girlfriend? He gave her a ring.

What did the pony say when he had a sore throat? Sorry, I'm a little horse.

What cheese can you lure a bear with? Camembert! (the lamest?)

Why was the patriotic pig wearing tap shoes? It was in-the-pen dance day.

What do buffalo say when their kid leaves for school? Bison

Where does the dog leave his car when he shops? The barking lot.

Time flies like an arror, but fruit flies like a banana.

What does a skeleton order at a restaurant? Spare ribs.

I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger, and then it hit me. (classy)

Where to beavers keep their money? River banks.

Why is it so hard to play football in the jungle? Because the fastest player is a big cheetah.

Why wasn't the kitty invited to the picnic? Because she always left litter.

Why are farmers so cool? They are outstanding in their field.

How do little dogs say hello in Japanese? Koni Chihuahua (the 2nd lamest).

Why did Adele cross the street? To say hello from the other side.

Why do zombies make such good politicians? They are good at giving sound bites.

What did one ocean say to the other? Nothing, it just waved.

What did zero say to eight? Nice belt!

What's a zombie's favourite vacation destination? The Dead Sea

Why is the mushroom always invited to parties? Because he's a fungi!

What do you call a donkey with three legs and one eye? A winky wonky donkey. (uhh..)

What does a house wear? Address.

One time I played football in a chicken coop. It was fun but there were too many fowls.

Why does a chicken coop only have two doors? If it had 4, it would be a chicken-sedan.

Where do you take a sick boat? To the dock.

What do you call a camel with no hump? Humphrey.

How many wizards does it take to change a light bulb? Depends on what you're trying to change it into!

Why did the zombie attack the runner? He was in the mood for some fast food.

Alexa, Tell Me a Political Joke - See How Big Their Database Is

People have asked if I'm going to run for president, but I think I'm better suited for speaker of the house. (3x, 2x in succession)

What breakfasts do politicians like? Vote-meal.

How did the politician (P) get over his stage fright? Someone gave him a vote of confidence. (5x, 3x in succession - debug please!)

Which tree should be president of the forest? Well, the evergreen won the poplar vote. (2x)

Where does the president of all princesses live? In the Snow White House. (2x)

Why do P's want you to vote first thing in the morning? The early bird gets the terms. (3x)

Why did the party-switching chicken cross the road? To vote for the other side! (2x)

-- Lame .. that they only have 7. How hard can it be to add more? Idiots!