YMUG Newsletter – 2016/02/20
YMUG MEETING?
Sometime this week I’m going to have a chat with my spouse and pick a day during the school two week Easter break for a YMUG meeting at Sprotborough. Some date NOT April 2nd. I haven’t had a chance to really consider things this week owing to my wife being away a lot. Anyway, plenty of time eh?
Oh, by the way, Robert Thomson (RHT@rht.at) says if anyone near Beverley would like help getting to the meeting let him know. I haven’t decided if I’ll be driving or training . . . riding the train. Travelling by train? Whatever.
APPLE V FBI
Most of you will probably have heard something about the ongoing feud between the FBI and Apple regarding an iPhone 5c owned by one of the San Bernadino terrorists. The FBI wants Apple to get them access to the phone’s data and Apple doesn’t want to do that. Sort of. There have been several developments over the last few days. There are lots and lots of blog posts discussing various aspects of the case including demonstrations and petitions, people supporting Apple (like Steve Wozniak, facebook, Twitter and Google), people not supporting Apple (like Donald Trump and someone from the US Justice Department who says Apple’s response is a marketing strategy), various legislators threatening new legislation and on and on and on. I’ve found three articles by Ars Technica which do a good job discussing the technical aspects of the situation.
First in support of Tim Cook’s stance: http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/02/why-tim-cook-is-right-to-call-court-ordered-iphone-hack-a-backdoor/
Second an explanation of what the FBI really needs from Apple: http://arstechnica.com/apple/2016/02/encryption-isnt-at-stake-the-fbi-knows-apple-already-has-the-desired-key/
Third, and this is the best bit, it appears that someone changed the phone’s iCloud account password after it was in police custody! Apple figured that the FBI could get what it wanted from an iCloud backup but that didn’t work because of the change. http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/02/apple-we-tried-to-help-fbi-terror-probe-but-someone-changed-icloud-password/
I hope you find those articles illuminating. There is a lot of spurious information and speculation out there.
OS X AND MAC STUFF
Tip of the week: if you keep ‘losing’ your cursor on your screen try ‘shaking’ it (via mouse or trackpad) and it will temporarily enlarge if you’re running OS X 10.11 El Capitan.
http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/os-x-el-capitan-how-to-optimize-the-cursor-size-and-shakability
Apple has extended its Macbook Pro Repair program which addresses only some machines released in 2011, 2012 and 2013 video problems. If your machine is covered you now have ’til the end of the year to take it in.
http://www.appleworld.today/blog/2016/2/19/apple-extends-macbook-pro-repair-extension-program-for-video-issues
Okay, who forgot to tell me that you can create email aliases with your Apple iCloud account? Come on, fess up. You can create separate aliases for exclusive use with Amazon and ebay for example. And then if one of the aliases gets overrun with spam you kill it.
http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/icloud-using-email-aliases
If you’ve got some audio books on CD and you’d like to import them to your iTunes library then Audiobook Builder is for you!!
http://www.appleworld.today/blog/2016/2/16/audiobook-builder-makes-dealing-with-audiobooks-in-itunes-a-breeze
I had cause to try ‘zapping my pram’ this last week to fix a problem. In case you’ve forgotten how to do that (or why) like I had here’s a reminder.
http://www.appleworld.today/blog/2016/2/17/how-to-reset-the-pramnvram-on-your-mac
1Password now has a family subscription plan.
http://www.macrumors.com/2016/02/16/agilebits-debuts-1password-for-families/
A review of three Mac text editors: Ulysses, Byword and Rough Draft.
http://www.cultofmac.com/413247/best-text-editor-apps-for-mac-os-x/
Fluid Browser lets you keep that youtube clip on top of your other open windows.
http://www.cultofmac.com/413103/fluid-browser-picture-in-picture-mac-reviews/
iSTUFF
You might remember the Error 53 kurfluffle . . . kerfluffle . . . issue wherein some people had their iPhone home buttons repaired by someone other than an authorised Apple dealer and then the next time they updated their device it got ‘bricked’ which my grandmother would have translated as ‘kaput’. Well, Apple has a released a patch for iOS 9.2.1 (which I’ve installed) and it really does fix that problem, according to the guys at iFixit. Yeah!!
http://ifixit.org/blog/7924/error-53-fix/
Did you know you can save an attachment in iOS Mail as a .pdf and stash it in iBooks? See, you do learn something every day!
Considering the ongoing disagreement between Apple and the FBI here’s a guide for creating a more secure passcode for you iDevice.
http://www.macrumors.com/how-to/create-a-more-secure-passcode-on-ios-devices/
Some of the best gloves that you can wear and still use your iDevice.
http://www.engadget.com/2016/02/19/the-best-touchscreen-winter-gloves/
Just look at these beautiful wood iPhone cases. Sigh.
http://www.cultofmac.com/413172/pad-quills-new-wood-cases-for-iphone-are-tougher-than-steel/
UK mobile network Three (3), is going to try ad-blocking on their end. If it works it will be fab-u-lous.
Carrier’s cunning scheme will block all ‘irrelevant’ mobile ads
A mom in America helped track down her kidnapped daughter using Find My iPhone.
http://www.cultofmac.com/413248/mom-uses-find-my-iphone-to-track-down-her-kidnapped-daughter/
WWW = WEIRD, WONDERFUL AND WHY
The neuroscience of wine. Why you might prefer a cheaper tipple.
http://nautil.us/issue/33/attraction/the-neuroscience-of-wine
How to destroy a soda tin with a ping pong ball if you’re into that sort of thing.
Destroying a Soda Can with a Ping Pong Ball at 500MPH [Video]
Why would anyone bother making a Rubik’s Cube as tall as a person?
The World’s Largest Rubik’s Cube is 20,000 Times Larger Than a Regular Cube [Video]
I can, however, understand why some rich child would love to have a ‘smart’ house for their Barbie dolls even if it does cost about $300.
http://www.engadget.com/2016/02/15/barbie-hello-dream-house-iot-voice-commands/
Oh dear, it looks like the CEO of Volkswagen DID know some models were belching out more pollutants than they should have. And he thought no one would find out?
http://www.engadget.com/2016/02/19/nyt-leaked-memos-martin-winterkorn-volkswagen/
The actor Shia LaBeouf is hanging out in a lift at the Oxford Union because . . . oh, who cares.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-35612864
February 20th is the 51st day of the year and is the Day of Heavenly Hundred Heroes in Ukraine.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY to: Ansel Adams (b 1902, d 1984), Pierre Boulle (b 1912, d 1994), Gloria Vanderbilt (b 1924), Robert Altman (b 1925, d 2006), Sidney Portier (b 1927), Buffy Sainte-Marie (b 1941), Mike Leigh (b 1943), Brenda Blethyn (b 1946), Sandy Duncan (b 1946), Peter Osgood (b 1947, d 2006), Ivana Trump (b 1949), Walter Becker of Steely Dan (b 1950), Gordon Brown (b 1951), Anthony Head (b 1954), Patty Hearst (b 1954), Cindy Crawford (b 1966), Kurt Cobain (b 1966, d 1994).
Rest in peace these folks who died on February 20th: Frederick Douglass (b 1818, d 1895), Robert Peary (b 1856, d 1920), Max Schreck (b 1879, d 1936), Anthony Asquith (b 1902, d 1968), Gene Siskel (b 1946, d 1999), Hunter S Thompson (b 1937, d 2005).
Some notable events that took place on February 20th: Orkney and Shetland are ‘pawned’ by Norway to Scotland in lieu of a dowry for Margaret of Denmark, Wikipedia’s words, not mine (1472), The Barber of Seville premiers (1816), Swan Lake premiers (1877), John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit the earth (1962), the Soviet Union launches the Mir spacecraft (1986), the death of Umberto Eco is announced (2016). I mention this because it was only earlier this week I bought a DVD copy of The Name of the Rose and I was watching it last night. I was also watching part of House of Cards when Ian Richardson died. Spooky.
FUNNIES, ETC
Pope Francis on Trump: “A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian.”
Trump on Pope Francis: “No leader, especially a religious leader, should have the right to question another man’s religion or faith.”
Trump on Ted Cruz: “How can Ted Cruz be an Evangelical Christian when he lies so much and is so dishonest?”
“We’re going to have an election, and if liberals are so confident that the American people want unlimited abortion on demand, want religious liberty torn down, want the Second Amendment taken away, want veterans’ memorials torn down, want the crosses and Stars of David sandblasted off of the tombstones of our fallen veterans, then go and make the case to the people.”
— Sen. Ted Cruz
“We’re gonna have businesses that used to be in New Hampshire that are now in Mexico come back to New Hampshire, and you can tell them to go f*** themselves, because they let you down, and they left.”
— Donald Trump
Donald Trump, asked how he would deal with North Korea and Kim Jong Un:
“I would get China to make that guy disappear in one form or another very quickly.”
CBS This Morning correspondent: “How do you make him disappear? Assassinate him?”
Trump: “No — well — you know I’ve heard of worse things, frankly. I mean this guy’s a bad dude.”
Officers in Brooklyn, N.Y., responded to a report of a suicidal man. They entered the apartment of John Antoine, 86. “The individual [the officer] encountered inside the residence was armed with a large kitchen knife and was in immediate proximity to both the sergeant and a 3-year-old who was present in the residence,” a police spokesman said. “The individual refused to comply with the sergeant’s commands to drop the knife,” so Antoine was tasered, and was charged with harassment for failing to drop the knife. This did nothing for Antoine’s granddaughter or her 23-year-old boyfriend, who was the suicidal man police were called about. The original call, which included the boyfriend’s name and age, was passed through several people, but the responding officers only knew they were looking for a suicidal man. Antoine had the knife to cut onions for the pot of soup he was cooking: police found him at the stove. He is suing the city for excessive force, and filing a false charge. “It is scary to think that our police force has such a lack of communication amongst each other,” said Antoine’s lawyer. (MS/New York Daily News)
There are three kinds of men in this world.
Some remain single and make wonders happen.
Some have girlfriends and see wonders happen.
Then some get married and wonder what happened!
When asked in class; Why do women live a better, longer and a more peaceful life than men one student replied: “Because women don’t have wives!”
Husband to his wife: “Honey… I’ve invited a friend home for supper.”
Wife: “What? Are you crazy? The house is a mess, I haven’t been shopping, all the dishes are dirty and I don’t feel like cooking a fancy meal!”
Husband: “I know all that.”
Wife: “Then why did you invite a friend home for supper?”
Husband: “Because the fool is thinking of getting married!”
Message to mother-in-law: “Dear Mother-in-law, Don’t teach me how to handle my children. I am living with one of yours and she needs a lot of improvement!”
When a married man replies; “I’ll think about it.” what he really means is that he hasn’t asked his wife for permission yet!
After their 11th child, an Alabama couple decided that was enough, as they could not afford a larger bed. So the husband went to his veterinarian and told him that he and his cousin didn’t want to have any more children.
The doctor told him that there was a procedure called a vasectomy that could fix the problem but that it was expensive.
‘A less costly alternative,’said the doctor, ‘is to go home, get a cherry bomb, (fireworks are legal in Alabama) light it, put it in a beer can, then hold the can up to your ear and count to 10.’
The Alabamian said to the doctor, ‘I may not be the smartest tool in the shed, but I don’t see how putting a cherry bomb in a beer can next to my ear is going to help me.
‘Trust me,’ said the doctor.
So the man went home, lit a cherry bomb and put it in a beer can. He held the can up to his ear and began to count: ‘1, 2, 3, 4, 5’ at which point he paused, placed the beer can between his legs and continued counting on his other hand.
This procedure also works in Tennessee, Kentucky, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Parts of Georgia, Missouri, West Virginia and all of WashingtonDC.
A Mafia Godfather finds out that his bookkeeper, Guido, has cheated him out of $10,000,000.00. His bookkeeper is deaf. That was the reason he got the job in the first place. It was assumed that Guido would hear nothing and would therefore never have to testify in court.
When the Godfather goes to confront Guido about the missing $10 million, he takes along his Scots lawyer, who knows sign language.
The Godfather tells the lawyer, “Ask him where the money is.”
The lawyer, using sign language, asks Guido, Where’s the money?
Guido signs back, “I don’t know what you are talking about.”
The lawyer tells the Godfather, “He says he doesn’t know what you are talking about.”
The Godfather pulls out a pistol, puts it to Guido’s head and says, “Ask him again or I’ll kill him!”
The lawyer signs to Guido, “He’ll kill you if you don’t tell him.”
Guido trembles and signs back, “OK! You win! The money is in a brown briefcase, buried behind the Shed at my cousin Bruno’s house.”
The Godfather asks the lawyer, “What did he say?”
The lawyer replies, “You are a wee shite and don’t have the balls to pull the trigger.”
Quotes from Winnie the Pooh.
“Some people care too much. I think it’s called love.”
“You can’t stay in your corner of the Forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.”
“It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn’t use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like “What about lunch?”
“I think we dream so we don’t have to be apart for so long. If we’re in each other’s dreams, we can be together all the time.”
“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.”
“Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day.”
“If the person you are talking to doesn’t appear to be listening, be patient. It may simply be that he has a small piece of fluff in his ear.”
“I’m not lost for I know where I am. But however, where I am may be lost.”
“I used to believe in forever, but forever’s too good to be true”
“Some people talk to animals. Not many listen though. That’s the problem.”
“I don’t feel very much like Pooh today,” said Pooh. “There there,” said Piglet. “I’ll bring you tea and honey until you do.”
“Piglet noticed that even though he had a Very Small Heart, it could hold a rather large amount of Gratitude.”
“What I like doing best is Nothing.”
“How do you do Nothing,” asked Pooh after he had wondered for a long time.
“Well, it’s when people call out at you just as you’re going off to do it, ‘What are you going to do, Christopher Robin?’ and you say, ‘Oh, Nothing,’ and then you go and do it.It means just going along, listening to all the things you can’t hear, and not bothering.”
“Oh!” said Pooh.”
“Well,” said Pooh, “what I like best,” and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn’t know what it was called.”
When you see someone putting on his Big Boots, you can be pretty sure that an Adventure is going to happen.”
“I wonder what Piglet is doing,” thought Pooh. “I wish I were there to be doing it, too.”
“Rabbit’s clever,” said Pooh thoughtfully.
“Yes,” said Piglet, “Rabbit’s clever.”
“And he has Brain.”
“Yes,” said Piglet, “Rabbit has Brain.”
There was a long silence.
“I suppose,” said Pooh, “that that’s why he never understands anything.”
“When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you Think of Things, you find sometimes that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it.”
“Just because an animal is large, it doesn’t mean he doesn’t want kindness; however big Tigger seems to be, remember that he wants as much kindness as Roo.”
“Think, think, think.”
“A bear, however hard he tries, grows tubby without exercise.”
“Think it over, think it under.”
“It’s not much of a tail, but I’m sort of attached to it.”
“Nobody can be uncheered with a balloon.”
“I did know once, only I’ve sort of forgotten.”
“Bother.”
“Pooh,” said Rabbit kindly, “you haven’t any brain.”
“I know,” said Pooh humbly.”
“My spelling is Wobbly. It’s good spelling but it Wobbles, and the letters get in the wrong places.”
“You never can tell with bees.”
I had the oddest week, plans made and then altered and then broken. No routine at all. Oh well, school starts up again on Monday so that should help. Talk to you next week.
