the iMentor

Hints & rants

This weB-LOG is about the musing of a technical consultant. It is the iMentor's thoughts on technology and the human condition.

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Author: Rick Thues

Zoom

July 3, 2020 Uncategorized No Comments
Episode 599 July 25, 2020 In this time of isolation in our battle against the Corona virus pandemic human contact is desperately missed. Not being able to socialize with our co-workers, friends and relatives leaves a void in our souls. One company has come to the rescue. This company is Zoom Video Communications. They are the developers of the video conferencing software, Zoom. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FFok7oW2sI Other video conferencing (VCON) software exists. Skype is a popular platform for VCON. It is free to use, but does require a Microsoft account. Requiring an account complicates getting everyone to participate. Some people still struggle with...
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Talk to the Animals

July 3, 2020 Uncategorized No Comments
Episode 598 July 18,2020 When i was in elementary school, just learning how to read, our class would walk from Pacific Drive school to the Fullerton public library. We spent an hour at the library and were allowed to check out a book. i discovered Doctor Doolittle. i read every book. There were 12 books in the series. i could not stop turning pages. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvMcKbo0vYc Doctor Doolittle was a character created by Hugh Lofting who could talk to animals. The doctor learned to speak with animals from his parrot, Polynesia. “Oh, we parrots can talk in two languages — people’s...
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Long Tail

July 1, 2020 Uncategorized No Comments
Episode 597 July 11, 2020 Have you ever thought of publishing a book or a podcast? Is there a product that you would like to market?  How will you get the word out? What will drive consumers to you? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9shw79yxXmY The long tail of internet marketing can bring success to your podcast, song, Youtube video, bLog, book or product. The long tail refers to a graph which shows that a few vendors sell the highest volume of products. A great many vendors sell small volumes of similar products. The result is that the majority of product is sold in small...
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Mirror

June 30, 2020 Uncategorized 2 Comments
Episode 596 July 4, 2020 A piece of glass with a silver coating can tell so much about me. A mirror shows me who other people see. In the mirror is my long haired father. There is wisdom in the mirror that i did not know i had. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9NYDgbKsBE The first mirrors were polished obsidian stone.  Later, solid polished bronze and silver proved to be too expensive and prone to corrosion. Venetian plate glass in the 16th century was back coated with mercury. This reflected well, but was highly toxic. Today mirrors are made of perfectly flat, polished glass. Aluminum...
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Components

June 22, 2020 Uncategorized 1 Comment
Episode 595 June 27, 2020 Everything is made of parts. Structures are made of materials. A story has integrant scenes. Groups are composed of constituents. Food is made of ingredients. Decisions are based on factors.  Personalities are a collection of aspects. The universe exists in many dimensions. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRaQ1qAAuCE Modular component construction makes for easy repairs. If a part in a machine fails the part can be replaced instead of the entire machine. One of the critical decisions in repairing a system is to determine what component level to replace. On a camping trip the side crank tongue jack on my...
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Not as it Seems

June 15, 2020 Uncategorized 2 Comments
Episode 594 June 20, 2020 “Well, Jane, it just goes to show you, it’s always something — if it ain’t one thing, it’s another.” — Roseanne Roseannadanna (Gilda Radner) When your computer slows down it is very frustrating. All you know is that everything you do takes a long time. Every command results in a spinning beach ball. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVEmvtJiIOo Was your computer hacked? Is your Internet connection slow? Is something broken or failing? Ask yourself, "when does the slowness occur?" Is your computer slow when you are in an Internet connected application? Email, browsers like Safari, text apps, online databases...
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