A quiet visit with a LaRouche supporter
Posted: February 21, 2012 Filed under: politics | Tags: Holden, larouche Leave a comment »“It’s all about the British financial institutions,” said the female Lyndon LaRouche supporter. She was talking with a woman in front of the Holden post office.
Read the rest of A quiet visit with a LaRouche supporter on my TelegramTowns.com blog.
Obama, Romney Go Mobile for Money
Posted: February 21, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: CMO Site, mobile, obama, politics, romney, square Leave a comment »The Obama and Romney campaigns are using mobile technologies to collect political donations.
Both campaigns will use Square. Additionally, Romney supporters can download a copy of the candidate’s Believe in America jobs plan by tweeting about the book via Pay with a Tweet. The book is No. 9 on the Amazon Kindle best-seller list.
Read the rest of my blog post, Obama, Romney Go Mobile for Money, at The CMO Site.
Crime in suburbia
Posted: February 20, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized Leave a comment »From The Landmark (subscription required):
[Editor's note: there were 25 suspicious items this week.]
Holden
Monday, February 6
5:36 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, running unattended, Main St.
Tuesday, February 7
4:07 a.m. Disturbance with prisoner, covering camera with toilet paper, spitting and banging on floor
10:43 a.m. Police out with loose dog, Malden St.
4:28 p.m. Police out with two skateboarders, Princeton St.
5:13 p.m. Skateboarders on Princeton St. refuse to leave property
10:01 p.m. Suspicious vehicles in lot, Holden St.
Wednesday, February 8
12:58 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Main/Reservoir Sts.
2:30 a.m. Suspicious vehicle sitting outside house on Oakwood St.
6:32 a.m. Police check on individual wanted by Boston PD, Princeton St.
10:14 a.m. Loose dog complaint, Highland St., library
1:06 p.m. Persons report they paid for tree service that wasn’t rendered, Main St.
1:51 p.m. Sex offender registration renewal, Main St.
4:06 p.m. Caller reporting dispute with employee, Boyden Rd.
8:26 p.m. Teens smashing bottles on the side of Princeton St.
Thursday, February 9
9:22 a.m. Narcotics violation, high school, Main St.
9:24 a.m. Narcotics violation, high school, Main St.
1:30 p.m. Two kids on ice, Main St.
4:13 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, person videotaping neighborhood, Brentwood Dr.
5:10 p.m. Chainsaw left beside Malden St.
6:04 p.m. Person took bottle out of pile of rubbish and began walking around, Reservoir St.
7:34 p.m. Young female walking down Dogwood Cir. with no coat on, picked up by brown van
9:37 p.m. Police check on suspicious vehicles in parking lot, Highland Ave.
11:23 p.m. Suspicious vehicle parked behind business, Wachusett/Manning Sts.
11:34 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Manning St.
Friday, February 10
7:59 a.m. Small gray dog running loose, Causeway St.
9:13 a.m. Checking on vehicle regarding road rage incident, Industrial Dr.
12:08 p.m. Downed line repaired without detail officer, Pleasant St.
1:44 p.m. Police assist person locked out of home, Malden St.
7:21 p.m. Group of youths walking through neighborhood, causing disturbance, General Hobbs Rd.
7:32 p.m. Caller reports youths back, causing disturbance, Nichols St.
10:07 p.m. Large animal in Cranbrook Dr.
10:25 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Main St.
10:32 p.m. Police check suspicious person, Main St.
11:53 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, police move people along, Old South Rd.
Saturday, February 11
12:00 a.m. Suspicious person dressed in black walking, Main St./Park Ave.
10:11 a.m. Dog ran away, Main St.
3:41 p.m. Vehicle lockout, Reservoir St.
5:31 p.m. Large group of kids harassing caller, Nichols St.
11:29 p.m. Suspicious white van in Union St.
Sunday, February 12
6:38 a.m. Private investigator in area of Colonial and Edgewood
7:29 a.m. Male in woods raking, Paugus Rd.
Paxton
Monday, February 6
9:46 a.m. Caller reports large box in travel lane of Pleasant St.
10:17 a.m. Person at station to speak with officer about a collection box for the Heart Association, Pleasant St.
6:54 p.m. Assist person locked out of vehicle, Tanglewood Rd.
Wednesday, February 8
10:12 a.m. Person at station reporting suspicious activity on his property, Pleasant St.
12:30 p.m. Police go to business on Maple Ave. to speak to person about suspicious activity
Thursday, February 9
11:40 a.m. Person at station for car seat inspection, Pleasant St.
Friday, February 10
10:28 a.m. Suspicious vehicle parked in driveway, Pleasant St.
3:59 p.m. Police assist person locked out of vehicle, Pleasant St.
6:13 p.m. Two suspicious vehicles in area of Richards Ave.
Princeton
Monday, February 6
2:24 p.m. Two men approached caller’s house and tried to get information from her neighbors, Esty Rd.
Tuesday, February 7
11:09 a.m. Two loose boxer dogs, Main St.
10:23 p.m. Caller reports “very strange sound” similar to jet engine, Willson Rd.
11:02 p.m. Caller reports loud “jet engine” sounds, can’t sleep, Gregory Rd. Found to be mechanical issue with ski area snow guns
Thursday, February 9
4:04 p.m. Hubbardston PD reports car into guardrail, Rte.
62. Found to be in Hubbardston
6:45 p.m. Caller hit coyote, Goodnow Rd.
Saturday, February 11
2:27 p.m. Horse caught up in rope, Wheeler Rd.
Rutland
Monday, February 6
7:36 a.m. Loose dog, Carly Cir.
9:53 a.m. Person at station to speak with officer regarding the Internet, Main St.
11:25 a.m. Caller reports someone in business parking lot is doing drugs, Maple Ave.
12:51 p.m. Caller’s neighbor is burning trash in fireplace, Kosta Ave. Referred to fire dept.
2:48 p.m. Dead cat on Rte. 68
5:20 p.m. Suspicious white pickup truck in area all day, Birchwood Rd.
Tuesday, February 7
2:20 a.m. Assist Barre PD with Breathalyzer during booking, Main St.
8:29 a.m. Male sitting in silver pickup parked on sidewalk, John Robert Dr.
5:27 p.m. Suspicious vehicle parked at end of driveway for long time, Barre Paxton Rd.
9:22 p.m. Suspicious vehicle pulled onto property, Glenwood Rd.
Wednesday, February 8
3:36 p.m. Person at station to speak with officer about phone she received, Main St.
11:32 p.m. Black Lab tangled up in bushes behind house, Mary Way
Thursday, February 9
7:13 a.m. Suspicious van parked in front of residence, Forbes Rd.
11:51 a.m. Person at station to return GPS that does not belong to her, Main St.
Friday, February 10
8:32 p.m. Suspicious vehicle following female, Central Tree Rd./Naquag St.
9:51 p.m. Police assist person looking for lost dog, Glenwood Rd.
Saturday, February 11
3:27 p.m. Three dogs running in caller’s yard, Campbell St.
4:06 p.m. People yelling and screaming for two hours, Main St.; officer wanted
8:58 p.m. Snowmobiles and four-wheelers on lake causing lot of noise, Pommogussett Rd.
11:18 p.m. Report of gunshots, Rolling Ridge Rd.
Sunday, February 12
10:55 a.m. Suspicious pickup truck parked on Maple Ave.
Sterling
Monday, February 6
12:51 p.m. Caller reports receiving a call from a person from Las Vegas. Person bringing money and carrying a gun. Advised possible prank call, Rowley Hill Rd. Known scam call
Tuesday, February 7
7:56 a.m. Animal complaint. Summons served, School St.
7:58 a.m. Animal complaint. Summons served, Cole Rd.
4:50 p.m. Noise complaint, chain saws used for three hours, Flanagan Hill Rd.
Wednesday, February 8
8:03 a.m. Car “stalking” neighborhood.
Found to be private investigator, Bean Rd.
9:29 a.m. Person found tool box/tools all over Justice Hill/Upper N. Row Rds. Appears to be electricians tools
Thursday, February 9
7:26 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Clinton Rd.
4:52 p.m. Person arrived home to find back door kicked in, property missing, John Dee Rd.
9:12 p.m. Truck went down Colby Rd. and knocked over people’s lawn markers
9:53 p.m. Vehicle drove up road toward cell tower, Pine Wood Ln.
Friday, February 10
8:05 a.m. Report of dead dog beside Redemption Rock Trl./John Dee Rd. Found to be fox
9:02 a.m. Report of female looking for address, confirmed home health aide, Clemence Ave.
12:59 p.m. Scam call from person claiming family member needed money in Mexico, Worcester Rd.
1:28 p.m. Scam caller advised person she had won $5 million and only needed $250 for delivery of money, Birch Dr.
3:58 p.m. Moped and helmet inside fenced area Heywood/North Row Rds.
Saturday, February 11
8:08 a.m. Suspicious male, Princeton Rd.
8:46 a.m. State police report male went to side of building with pipe or object in his hands, Chocksett Rd.; all set, worker shutting off trucks
12:36 p.m. Person found stray dog, Laurelwood Rd.
Problems of a first-world suburban shopper
Posted: February 20, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: robots, shopping, walmart, worcester Leave a comment »Signs in the store are informing customers that the Greendale Sam’s Club will close and the new club off of Route 146 will open this spring (no date specified).
From Holden, it’s about equidistant to the B.J.’s in Leominster. Market Basket is in nearby Searstown Plaza, in the case that I’m buying less than a year’s worth of something. Of course, there’s a B.J.’s near the new Wegmans in Northborough.
But, Bill Randell has been reporting that Market Basket may be coming to the former Diamond Chevrolet in Worcester, which makes in-city shopping viable again.
All this is necessary, of course, until robots are ready to do our bidding:
Kroger debuts kiosk concept at area college campus
Page left blank
Posted: February 20, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: green, printing, publishing, technical documentation, UBS Leave a comment »I thought that we were done with this.
For years, in technical manuals, we’d left a blank to make the pagination work out properly. Standards and conventions dictated that the first page of a chapter or section should be on a right-read page (recto). If the previous chapter ended on a right page, we’d need a filler.
Somewhere along the line, people got worried that someone would think that something had been left out of the manual. To make sure that we dealt with that hypothetical catastrophe, we started putting “This page intentionally left blank.” on blank pages that were, thus, no longer blank.
Fast forward a couple of decades. Few people care that technical manuals have chapters starting on a right-read page. We’re also more conscious of dead trees.
I was wrong. Google Ngram, which scans books for occurrences of pa phrase or keywords, shows that we’ve been increasing our usage of this tree-killing practice.
So, I guess I should be surprised to find that UBS sent us a four-page Form 1099 with printing one side and this on the back:
Laptops, the next generation
Posted: February 18, 2012 Filed under: computers, keyboard Leave a comment »We’ve heard that tablet computers may overtake laptops in sales by 2015, plus or minus a year. I mentioned this in a conversation the other evening. Everyone over the age of 15 said that they’d have a difficult time working without a regular keyboard.
Fortunately, this be the era of technological bedazzlement, there is no need for which a silly product cannot be invented.
Therefore, we have jeans with a keyboard woven in the fabric and a USB wireless connection. (Tablet users may need a special adapter. At this point, however, an extra dongle should be the least of your concerns.)
The designers have yet to make manufacturing deals that would allow for mass production.
Let the “mouse in your pocket” jokes begin.
Did Linux miss its moment again?
Posted: February 17, 2012 Filed under: android, ipad, linux, tablets, ubuntu Leave a comment »This morning’s news includes a note that preorders are available for Spark, the open KDE tablet. To which the tech press, behaving like political reporters responding to the next not-Mitt, proclaims that ebruary seems to be shaping up to be the month of Linux tablets.
Um, no.
Unless you think that two Linux tablet announcement is a big deal.
Linux users have been saying for years that this is the year that companies and civilians will adopt Linux for desktop systems.
Google Trends for Linux desktop
Even with new, slick renditions of Linux from Ubuntu, Mint, and others, it just never got the respect or traction that Linux advocates sought. It’s too bad. Linux is a very good, solid, secure desktop operating system. It runs well on older, less powerful systems. It just never made it to your aunt’s computer.
And, then came the iPad. The tablet runs a deeply proprietary operating system from Apple. It owns the mind share, even if its market share is slipping. Some forecasts suggest that tablet sales will pass desktop/laptop sales within three or so years.
Android, Google’s tablet and phone operating system, is Linux-based and open source, but the interface is defined by Google and the hardware manufacturers. There are options to load various custom ROMs on tablets, of course. All the same, it’s all still the province of hackers and hobbyists.
Linux still owns the server environment, including pretty much everything that makes the web the web. The story remains, however, is that not only did Linux miss the chance to claim the desktop, the desktop computer itself may be moving to the back of the pack.
Miss a minute, miss a lot.
More on law schools and job prospects
Posted: February 17, 2012 Filed under: job, job.search, more.on, parallel.eagles | Tags: education, law school Leave a comment »The latest in the War on Law Schools comes in the form of a Tennessee student who said that her law school was negligent because they admitted her to the school. Because she hadn’t completed her undergraduate work, she won’t be eligible to take the bar exam, get a job as a lawyer, and eventually shed nearly $80K in student loans.
A few thoughts on this:
- Law students have been suing their schools for misrepresenting career prospects. Simply put, there are too many law school graduates chasing too few jobs.
- As we see in ‘Students Employed As Strippers’ Should Be Part Of A Law School’s Ranking, jobs for law school students aren’t always what you’d expect.
- Many of jobs available for lawyers (URL may be NSFW) not only won’t pay for a three-piece suit; you might not even be able to pay for a three-piece KFC dinner.
Further, claiming that you aren’t qualified and that it’s your school’s fault may not be a great career-building strategy. 
I wonder why Huck didn’t have one of these
Posted: February 13, 2012 Filed under: family, huck Leave a comment »
Car Stove, via bookofjoe
Happy Birthday, Michael
Posted: February 13, 2012 Filed under: birthdays Leave a comment »
Mike, Lindsey, and The Count
One of Mike’s favorite Sesame Street characters was The Count. We’d had this jack-in-the-box Count for a long time and gave it to him for this birthday. Within a few minutes, the littler kids in the party had grabbed the toy and were using it to scare young Billy (age 18 months).