JT's Blog

This is an open letter to corporate web sites.

Who thought an obnoxious offer “to chat” was a good idea?

Please STOP annoying me with your unwieldy, annoying, pop-up blocker circumventing offers to “chat”.  If I wanted to chat with you, I would find a “contact” link on your web site and speak with someone in an off-shored call center.  Why do you think it would somehow be more attractive to instant-message this person?  It’s merely a form of less effective, less efficient and more annoying customer service.  Whoever thought up of this IS AN IDIOT.  And everyone else who thinks it’s a good idea to jump on this bandwagon is suffering from EXTREME STUPIDITY and incompetence in leadership.

OK, I’m done.  You may now continue with your regularly scheduled programming.

This might come in handy someday. Share so you can go back to it when you need to.

Clothes – Hand sanitizer
Walls – Toothpaste or hairspray*
Carpet – White vinegar
Wood – Rubbing alcohol
Dry Erase Board- Dry erase marker

***Don’t scrub too hard with hairspray, you don’t want to remove the paint!

-Source: some post on FB

Some time ago, I got a Brother HL-2270DW printer from NewEgg. The price, the ease of configuration and the performance were all excellent. Let’s be perfectly clear, I don’t print a lot – maybe an average of 15 pages per week. So when the toner light started flashing, I figured I could keep going for a few months, right? I mean, any self-respecting geek knows you don’t replace the toner until the print is completely faded. And even then, you take out the toner, shake it a little, and get 30 or 40 more pages.

So I was astonished to have the printer just STOP on me, after printing 6 of 9 pages of a PDF that I really need. While digging around on the web a little, I found a youtube hack using straws and fun tack. No thanks. But there was a great comment in there, that suggested going to the web interface and reconfiguring the toner settings from STOP (which is the default) to Continue. Wow… cheeky buggers. They must really want to sell more toner cartridges.

So problem #1, how do you find the printer?  I used a great utility called Angry IP Scanner which showed me all the “live” IPs on my WiFi network. After using my web browser to hit a few unlabeled IPs, I found it.   Problem #2, logging in: FYI, the default login credentials for the Brother HL-2270DW are: u/admin  p/access . If you set yours and don’t remember it, reset the printer settings and that will restore the defaults. You may have to go fish for the IP again though.

OK so there. Have fun.

And don’t wait so long to get new toner next time.

🙂

In a world where warfare has become “high-value” asset assassinations at the hand of a remote controlled drone, it’s fascinating to read about honor among warriors in the field of battle.  Or skies, or seas of battle.  Fascinating stories here: http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/09/living/higher-call-military-chivalry/

Several years ago, the City of New York went around digging up and replacing sidewalks.  I’m not talking about the ramps that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, I’m talking about the city determining that your sidewalk is in a state of disrepair, and showing up one day with jackhammers, digging it up and replacing it before you have a chance to complain about the noise.  Of course, a very costly invoice arrives shortly thereafter.  This invoice is generally two to three times what such work would cost in the private sector and failure to pay results in the usual collections and seizure tactics.

While the public-safety motivation behind this policy is obvious, the simple fact is that landlords, not the City are liable for slip and fall accidents and the extremely subjective and unpublished criteria by that determines whose sidewalk gets dug up makes the process suspect.  Universally, landlords and supers see this as another form of taxation: a cash-grab by the New York City.

And now, the point of today’s post: this morning, I saw the sidewalk being dug up on 111th Street and Broadway, in front of the Citibank.  I stopped in to joke with a friend who works there.  He informed me that the city is replacing the sidewalk, pursuant to the policy I’ve just described.

My question: could these work crews not be more useful helping clear debris in the communities ravaged by the hurricane?

Oh, and for the record, this sidewalk was absolutely fine and did not need replacement.  What qualifies me to say this?  Simple: I walk on it every day.  Unlike the sidewalk on the opposite side of Broadway, where I’ve twisted my ankle several times along the uneven surfaces.

Look for yourself:

View Larger Map