Do I Have Freedom Of Speech On The Internet?
Posted August 16, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
I posted a comment to a blog the other day. Today I went back and it was gone. I e-mailed the guy who owns the blog and he told me he deleted it. What’s up with that? His blog is in the U.S. and I’m an American, so isn’t that a violation of my First Amendment rights?
Too many people think that freedom of speech means they have the right to say whatever they want, whenever they want, wherever they want, and everyone else has to allow it. Nope. It primarily means you can’t get arrested for what you say… most of the time. Read the rest of this article »
Should I Take A Pay-Cut to Move from A Temp Job to A Perm Job
Posted August 12, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
I’ve been temping in the tech industry and making some pretty good money, but I feel it’s time to settle down, find a “home” and start building a career somewhere. The problem is that recruiters keep trying to lowball me, telling me “perm” jobs pay less. Is this true? Should I take less or should I hold out for a perm job that pays the same rate as my temp gigs have?
The conventional wisdom in the employment industry is that the hourly rate for a temp job will be more than if you did the same job as a full-time employee because full-time employees get more benefits. But the real answer is that it depends on the benefits. Some are worth the pay cut, but some aren’t. Read the rest of this article »
Baby Cribs: Do I Need Drop-Down Sides?
Posted August 7, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
My younger sister has been looking at baby cribs for her impending new baby. Since I’m a dad, she asked me about baby cribs: How important to you both were the drop down sides? Did you guys use that all the time? Even when [your son] was wailing crying? Or did you just bypass that and reach into the crib and pick him up?
All the advice in the world doesn’t mean anything, because it’s mainly opinion. My opinion is that a crib without drop-down sides is harder on your back, arms and shoulders, and that comes from my wife picking a crib that was really pretty, but sacrificed a lot of utility and functionality in exchange for those good looks.
So to illustrate why drop-down sides are needed on a baby crib, I instructed my sister to do a simple experiment that would illustrate my point. Read the rest of this article »
How Do I Calculate My BMI (Body Mass Index)?
Posted August 4, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
I’ve been told that knowing my BMI or Body Mass Index is important to my health. How do I calculate it?
The formula for your BMI is relatively simple so long as you know your height in meters and your weight in kilograms. If you don’t, the conversions are pretty simple so long as you have a calculator. Read the rest of this article »
How Do I Run JavaScripts On My WordPress Blog?
Posted August 3, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
Every time I try to cut and paste some JavaScript from a tutorial site or free script site into my blog, it never works. I’ve tried this with a few different JavaScripts, so it would be a huge coincidence if they were all broken. I figure I’ve got to be doing something wrong. But what is it?
Generally the problem is that you’re entering the JavaScript into your blog editor which treats it like text, not like code. Your blog editor is adding HTML like line break tags and paragraph opening and closing tags after various lines within the JavaScript. You won’t see them when you edit your blog post within the blog software, but if you use the “view source” for the actual blog page seen by the public, you’ll see these. Read the rest of this article »
What Is DRM And Do I Need It?
Posted August 1, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
Ted from Eagle Rock writes: Recently, my kids have been talking about DRM and how bad it is. I don’t want to look tragically uncool by asking them these questions. What is DRM? Is it on my computer? If it is, can I get rid of it or do I need it?
DRM stands for Digital Rights Management. It’s basically a catch-all category for software that controls how you use and/or copy other software or files. It runs the gamut from Windows Genuine Advantage, which checks to make sure you’re not running a pirated copy of Windows, to the mechanisms used in some music files to try and make sure that only the person who bought the file plays it. Read the rest of this article »
What Is “Open Source” Software?
Posted by Mister Knowitall
K. in Pasco writes: I keep hearing about open source software. Is it better than regular software? How is it different?
There are basically two types of software: open source and closed source (with some grey areas in between).
With open source, when you buy or are given the software, you also get the source code or instructions on how to download the source code. This allows you to read the underlying programming instructions of the computer program(s) in the package and make changes if you want/need to. The Linux and Free BSD operating systems are open source. Read the rest of this article »
Can I Switch To VOIP, But Keep My Landline Number?
Posted July 30, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
Mr. Knowitall recently got off the phone with a client who was thinking about switching to VOIP to save money. Besides the standard per minute rates that were jacking up his client’s bill, he found out they were paying nearly $1,000 a month in foreign exchange service fees. Read the rest of this article »
Is Electronic Stability Control Worth It?
Posted July 28, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
I write in and ask myself: I was thinking about buying a 2009 Mazda 5 later this year. The Mazda 5 gets 27 mpg highway and is small and nimble, but it has no electronic stability control (ESC), which they call “dynamic stability control.” With recent studies stating stability control saves lives, I’m not sure if I should get it. Is the concern over stability control overblown or is it going to be worth the extra money to buy a more expensive, less fuel-efficient minivan?
The question you’re asking really breaks down to: how much extra will this cost and will I really ever need it? And those are good questions. First let’s look at “will I ever need it?” Read the rest of this article »
What Is MySQL and Why Do I Need It?
Posted July 24, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
Yankl writes: I keep hearing about My Sequel. Is this like My Space? Do I need it? And if I need it, why?
Yankl, MySQL (officially pronounced “”My Ess Que Ell”, but also as “My Sequel” by some of us old-timers) is basically the #1 open source database server in the world. It powers a lot of database driven web-sites like the one you’re reading right now. It also powers Google. Read the rest of this article »
What’s The Best OTC Sleep Aid?
Posted by Mister Knowitall
Fred asks: Are generic non-prescription sleeping pills as good as name brand? I use Tylenol Simply Sleep, but friends tell me I’m wasting money.
Fred, your friends are right. And here’s why. Read the rest of this article »
Does Laying A Baby On Its Back Prevent SIDS?
Posted July 23, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
Sandy T. in Portland asks: Everyone tells me that I have to lay my new baby on its back to prevent Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, but when I used to babysit as a teenager, everyone said to lay babies on their stomachs. When did this change, why, and is it on the level or one of those medical fads?
If it’s a fad, it’s a long-lived one, because the medical establishment has been recommending it officially for 16 years. Whether it’s as big a deal as they make it out to be is another story. Read the rest of this article »
Can You Fart Yourself To Death?
Posted by Mister Knowitall
Tom S. in Maryland writes: A few hours after making and eating a tasty cauliflower curry, I found myself thinking about the story going around the internet about the man in the small bedroom who farted so much he suffocated on the methane. Can that really happen?
Well, Tom, that particular story is an urban legend, but you asked if it can happen. Let’s do the math. Read the rest of this article »
SEO Enhanced Wordpress Theme: CSS Magic SEO
Posted July 22, 2008 by Mister Knowitall
Move your content to the top of the page for better SEO with this neat CSS theme.
One thing I’ve found as I’ve researched SEO is that a number of people claim (1, 2, 3) search engine algorithms look at your page from the top down, giving a higher weighting to the content at the top in determining what your page is about and what keywords are important in it. Read the rest of this article »
Broken Theme Previews in WordPress 2.6
Posted by Mister Knowitall
I created a theme for WordPress, but in 2.6 the theme previews window is empty when I select it. Why is it doing that? Read the rest of this article »
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