Every weekday, our guide to the Web takes care of business, tackling tech topics that really matter to everybody. From topic definitions to topical rants, Dan Gray’s pieces inform as much as they entertain.
With mortgage rates summering in happy valley, is this the time to buy a new home? Freddie (no relation to Apple) Mac’s most recent weekly survey shows 30-year fixed-rate mortgages at an average of 5.53 percent, down .04 from the week before and nearly three-quarters of a point from the year ago average of 6.21 [...]
I’m sitting here, typing away at full speed. There’s a big soggy chunk of air parked on the east coast and it’s making me nervous. Pardon the speed typing, but it’s raining cats and dogs and the sky is rumbling something fierce. While I usually enjoy the spectacle of nature, there are three reasons I [...]
While there are lots of cool high-tech careers, video game design holds a distinct allure that falls somewhere between Hollywood and Silicon Valley. I started thinking about the topic of video game design (again) when Chris interviewed animator and 3D artist Danny Ngan last week. Today’s kids don’t want to head off to Tinseltown to [...]
Of all of the annoying ringtones out there (and there sure are plenty), the Crazy Frog tops the charts. Lets just say that there are ringtones, and then there are ringtones. This one is so far over the top that it’s almost inexcusable. I’m no fan, but I came to an understanding when I read [...]
We’ve always considered ourselves fireworks aficionados here at rancho indebto. Alas, we’re stuck, not just in the swamps of Joisey, but in a state where personal fireworks displays are verboten. When summer rolls around, we roll to every public fireworks display we can catch (fireworks-mavens that we are). Imagine my surprise when an enticing flyer [...]
When choosing a help desk software solution, it’s always a good idea to select an application that actually helps (rather than hinders) those hard working folks on the help desk. Gnomie B offers a prime example. B works in tech support for a financial services company. He’s not at all keen on his company’s choice [...]
From the surveillance cameras catch the darnedest things department …
WBBH-TV, a NBC affiliate in Fort Myers, Florida reports that a night-time cleaning crew helped themselves to over $4,000 in alcohol at a local pirate-themed sports bar.
According to the report, the management of Harpoon Harry’s in Port Charlotte thought something was up, and had let the [...]
Ready for more fabulous horror stories from the call center? Today’s pair of doosies come to you from the support line of a large cable ISP. Let this be a word of warning: coon dogs, shotguns, and the Internet do not mix …
Can you really save money by shopping for auto insurance online? From the sound of this real world example from the gnome-o-sphere, you sure can …
Why is your favorite piece of software like an old pair of shoes?
Rancho indebto is in the midst of renovation. The sawdust has kept me away from a full schedule on the computers, and alas, it’s taken a toll on the daily routine. I missed a wicked offer on woot.com this week that would have been ideal for a revamped high-tech living room …
If I had ten cents for every dollar I lost in the stock market when the dotcom bubble popped, I’d have enough to eat lunch for a year …
Looking for a new place to spend your summer vacation? You can start chilling, right now … once you start browsing online for vacation rentals, endless hours will melt away at your desk. While searching the vacation rentals online isn’t quite as relaxing as actually being there, you won’t need to slather on the SPF [...]
While American football fans have become accustomed to all sorts of high-tech innovations — from the refs’ review of instant replays to first down video markers — soccer has been notoriously wary of technology. Unlike American football, the world’s football (a.k.a.: soccer) is strictly old school; the center ref controls the game. There’s no more [...]
Here’s yet another reason (a shocking reason, even) why you need to ditch your fax machine for a fax server…
Identity theft is one thing. Losing your cellphone after a wild night on the town? That’s something else, altogether … especially when the cellphone’s phone book includes phone numbers for Bill Gates, two former presidents, and a host of music and movie stars. Just ask Jimmy Buffett …
I’m getting ready to order the materials for the hardwood flooring project I mentioned last month. You can bet that I’ll have this one laid out on the PC long before I dust off the power tools …
I was flipping through the channels when I tuned into an eye-opening report on identity theft on CNN’s NewsNight with Aaron Brown. Rather than zeroing in on online identity theft, the piece focused on what can (and does) happen in the dirt world. It began with (and was largely inspired by) an ominous commercial for [...]
When the weather gets hot, one of the greatest joys of working from home is controlling the air conditioning settings. On the down side, you’re the one that has to pay for all that air conditioned comfort. With too many windows and almost as many computers, my home office was a hot box until I [...]
When I asked about LCD televisions, monitors and TV cards last night, I never expected so many great responses. Many many thanks to all who wrote! The Gnome-o-sphere has spoken. Here’s what they had to say …
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