August 24, 2008
Back from Berumda
Just back in the door from the island with an awful lot of e-mails to catch up with.
I'll be posting some photos over the next few weeks as the wife and I finish unpacking.
As you will see i was only anywhere near a computer twice so I haven't the faintest idea what has gone on in technology this week, in fact We were so relaxed I couldn't remember the number day it was.
Anyways I'll be back to work by Wednesday and semi-regular blogging will return once I finish trading my sea legs for pc legs.
Posted by Peter at 01:03 PM
August 17, 2008
I need a vacation
Well this will be the last post from me for at least 8 days. My wife and I are off to the docks and from there to Bermuda to celebrate our 20th anniversary.
And in case you are wondering why I just don't post from the boat there are three good reasons:
1. I don't own any kind of cell phone or personal remote access program.2. As regular readers of the blog know I'm much too cheap to pay for any 3rd party service.
3. My wife has made it clear that if I want to have a 25th anniversary there will be nothing even resembling a computer near us for the next week.
So I am back to the 70's living totally sans technology. It will be the first time since 1980 that I didn't have at least an Apple IIc near me. (That's what I learned on.)
So I will see you all in a week and perhaps have some pictures to show you on my return. Take care all.
Posted by Peter at 09:43 AM
June 26, 2008
Webathon for the Troops
Every now and then here we pitch for a good cause.
Over at Michelle Malkin's place they are having a Web-a-Thon to raise money for care packages for the troops overseas. As of this posting they have raised: 448.553!
If you want to listen or donate or enter the chat room go here.
It is a most worthy cause.
Posted by Peter at 08:40 PM
June 18, 2008
Enjoy it for now we will never see it again
Well if you are a sports fan in Boston in general these are the golden years and no year is no golden that this one:
Red Sox World series this yearCeltics World Championship this year
Boston College NCAA National Hockey Champions
New England Patriots Undefeated regular season, played in Super Bowl
New England Revolution (soccer) played in Championship game.
Boston Bruins 1st round playoffs lost in Seven games.
We will never see a season like this again in Boston so we better enjoy it while we can.
Posted by Peter at 12:34 PM
June 06, 2008
Still worth saying
Today is June 6th, its not a national holiday but it should be a day to remember (Memorial day not withstanding). 64 years ago today a lot of fellows most of them not much older then my teenage sons stormed a beach in northern France leading to the defeat and downfall of the Nazi empire.
Nearly 3,000 American's British and Canadians died that day and many more in the days following. It is very much worth saying what we said two years ago....
When you see an elderly man say in his 80's or 90 keep in mind that more likely than not when he was a young man he put himself on the line for us. Even if he didn't serve consider; we have 40 different types of flavored coffee to choose from, his coffee was rationed, as was meat and a lot of other things we take for granted.These aren't just old people; they are the reason why we have what we have today. Occasionally I'm asked if it's hard to take care of elderly customers. They might not hear or see so well when you talk to them etc. I say no, that isn't hard, what they did 60 years ago is hard and we owe them, big.
As long as I'm doing this blog, you are going to see those above two paragraphs every June 6th.
Posted by Peter at 02:10 PM
May 26, 2008
Memorial Day
Today is Memorial Day, a national holiday.
HiWired as always will be open 24-7 to service any and all computer needs of our customers.
We would like to join our countrymen in remembering those who have sacrificed their lives in defending our country, from Medal of Honor Winner Sgt. Paul Smith, to military blogger Major Andrew Olmsted from this war and and all the others whose names are too numerous to mention.
May we never forget their sacrifice and live our lives to be worthy of it.
Posted by Peter at 07:56 AM
May 11, 2008
Happy Mother's Day
Today is Mother's Day, and for those of you who have no idea what to get her, a working virus free computer is a great choice.
To all of our customer out there who are mothers have a wonderful Mothers day.
Posted by Peter at 10:10 PM
April 30, 2008
You've probably heard this one before
It's been a while since we've had some old fashioned humor so via Lorie here are the ways to tell if you are an Internet Hobo:
You Might be an Internet Hobo if:
You spend more time online trying to find a way of making money than actually making money.
You have more than one degree from an online university.
Your little black book is full of usernames and passwords.
Your space is My-space.
You think a vacation is Google’s earth.
Your 15 minutes of fame is on You-tube.
Road rage means a dial up connection.
You hear your kids say "the snail man's here".
Of course these days road rage can be just 256k ram.
Posted by Peter at 01:04 PM
April 21, 2008
A little History, Happy Patriots Day
Today is Patriots day, a holiday in Massachusetts and Maine, it is also the running of the Boston Marathon which made for an interesting drive into work today.
HiWired will as always be open our normal 24-7. If you want to learn a bit about Patriots day and the start of the American Revolution Jules Crittenden has a first rate post with first hand accounts of the day when the shot heard 'round the world was fired a snipit:
“‘I saw an occasional horseman dashing by, going up and down, but heard nothing more until I saw them coming back in the afternoon, all in confusion, wild with rage, and loud with threats. I knew there had been trouble, and that it had not resulted favorably for that retreating army. I heard the musket-shots just below, by the old Brooks Tavern, and trembled, believing that our folks were killed. Some of the rough, angry soldiers rushed up to this house and fired in; but fortunately for me and the children, the shots went into the garret, and we were safe. How glad I was when they all got by the house, and your grandfather and our neighbors reached home alive!’”
The internet brings this info to your doorstep.
Posted by Peter at 10:31 AM
March 12, 2008
The internet does what the internet does best
You just couldn't do stuff like this pre-internet and get it out the a wide audience:
Bonus points if you can identify each nation without using the YouTube Key.
Aldenteblog has it right. It is Genius.
Posted by Peter at 04:07 PM
March 04, 2008
The Father of modern gaming is dead
If you are even a little bit of a geek you know who Gary Gygax is. The inventor of Dungeons & Dragons (also made many other games such as Avalon Hill's Alexander which I have. Many of the current fantasy games you play online or via PC own a lot to him and is influence.
Gary Gygax died today at the age of 69. As a person who first played D&D in 1979 and who has been a gamer even longer tonight's game night will be a little sadder.
Games drove Pc's the high end PC's that are sold today are gaming PC. When you play your MMP today take a second and remember the fellow who started it all and built an industry. Or as an older player might say, Where is that 13th level Cleric with a raise dead spell when you need one?
Posted by Peter at 02:18 PM
February 25, 2008
A matter of presepective
I've mentioned Mighty Subs a few times in the past. I've mentioned that they are nice people and their subs are the size of Cuba, but alas I gave no proof....until now:
This is a computer keyboard this is a Large Mighty Sub. Any questions?
Posted by Peter at 04:21 PM | Comments (1)
February 03, 2008
ARRUGH!
So much for the working stat.
Well at least it wasn't something important like Red Sox Baseball...
Posted by Peter at 10:41 PM | Comments (0)
Not quite a holiday
Today is Superbowl Sunday. It is not a national holiday but it might as well be the way the country treats it.
HiWired will of course be open 24/7.
As far as the game goes the most important stat is this:
On Superbowl Sunday's that I have off, the Patriots are 0-2.
On Superbowl Sunday's that I work, the Patriots are 3-0.
Today I work 1 p.m. to Midnight.
Posted by Peter at 10:38 AM | Comments (0)
January 21, 2008
Blue Monday
Today January 21, 2008 has been given the title of "Blue Monday" - the gloomist day of the year. Do you believe this? If so let me hear from you.
Posted by Scott at 10:50 PM | Comments (0)
January 01, 2008
Happy New Year and a get well wishes
Today is New Years Day (the 8th day of Christmas). HiWired will as always be open all day to help you with all your tech needs.
To all our customers and to everyone else we wish you a happy and healthy new year.
And on that healthy note all of us at HiWired wish our co-worker Paul a speedy recovery from heart problems that forced him to start the new year in the hospital. We wish him and his family the best at this trying time and look forward to his return to solve the most difficult of tech problems that befuddle our customers.
Posted by Peter at 07:44 AM | Comments (0)
December 26, 2007
Kwanzza and Boxing day
Today marks the begining of Kwanzza the newest of the December Celebrations now in its 41st year and going strong.
It is also the 2nd day of Christmas Celebrated as Boxing Day (St. Stephen's day) particularly in countries of the old British Empire.
To all our customers who celebrate them we wish a happy Boxing Day and Kwanzaa a Merry 2nd day of Christmas and short lines at the mall returning stuff.
Of course that electronic stuff you have might not actually be defective, and you may be able to avoid the line by calling us to get it working. We are here 24/7 to do so.
Posted by Peter at 08:25 AM | Comments (0)
December 25, 2007
Merry Christmas
Today is Christmas Day the first of the twelve days of Christmas and a national holiday.
HiWired as always will be open 24/7 for all your PC needs.
To all of us to all of you a very Merry Christmas.
And to all of you who don't Celebrate Christmas, have a nice day.
(BTW its amazing the IPODS the kids got for Christmas both have hard drivers larger than the PC that they will be using it on.)
And in case anyone is interested I got this this this this and this. Exactly what a wanted!
Posted by Peter at 09:48 AM | Comments (0)
December 05, 2007
Its time for Hanukkah
At sundown last night the Jewish feast of Hanukkah began.
For those of you who don't want to bother going through our archives info on the holiday is available here here here and here.
This year Hanukkah runs through the 12th of December. We at HiWired wish all of our customers who celebrate it a happy and healthy Hanukkah.
Posted by Peter at 09:54 AM | Comments (0)
November 16, 2007
my beowulf review
Just came back from seeing beowulf 3d and I just have to say. WOW! I went in thinking it was anohter failed atempt at motion capture and bad acting but I was so wrong. Not only was the acting good but the graphics were amazing! There are parts where you think its actually real. The effects, animations, sound and music were phenomenal! 3d was an awsome touch too, they made it so plenty of things fly at you and make you feel like your actually there fighting monsters. The story itself was very much inline with the story and all in all.. I'd say go to your nearest Imax and watch this.. youll thank me!
Posted by Dustin at 12:06 AM | Comments (0)
November 11, 2007
Remembering
Today is November 11th Traditional Veterans day in the US (also known as decoration day). It is Remembrance, Poppy or Armistice Day in the UK and countries in the British Commonwealth and France.
Here in the US Veterans day will be celebrated tomorrow.
HiWired will as always be open 24/7 to provide tech support.
We wish all vets everywhere the very best and thank them for their service. We particularly remember the very few remaining World War I vets worldwide (between 28 & 31 at last count).
The next time you seen an elderly gentleman say of 80 or more there is an excellent chance that he saw service during World War II. I would suggest taking the time to introduce yourself, say thanks and get some first hand information. It is a source of living history that will soon be gone.
Also it is worth noting that Google has decided to mark Veterans day this year. One odd thing is the helmet icon used would be a great fit for all the British and Commonwealth nations yet does not appear on those sites. This is passing strange as they marked the day in Canada last year with a very tasteful display.
And of course don't forget Project Valour IT.
UPDATE: The New York Times has a great story today about the last Doughboy who actually made it to France:
The years since have seen the passing of one last after another — the last combat-wounded veteran, the last Marine, the last African-American, the last Yeomanette — until, now, we are down to the last of the last.It’s hard for anyone, I imagine, to say for certain what it is that we will lose when Frank Buckles dies. It’s not that World War I will then become history; it’s been history for a long time now. But it will become a different kind of history, the kind we can’t quite touch anymore, the kind that will, from that point on, always be just beyond our grasp somehow. We can’t stop that from happening. But we should, at least, take notice of it.
The trick is to remember and appreciate, as long as we do that we've got him covered.
Posted by Peter at 05:25 PM | Comments (0)
October 31, 2007
Happy Halloween
Usually this is a place of technical babel but today is Halloween and it wouldnt be cool to forget about it. Hopefully everyone had a good safe night of candy and costumes.. and pumpkins.. this one actually took a good long time and a dremel. :) Anyone else have a good pumpkin? Why not share it here?
Posted by Dustin at 11:03 PM | Comments (0)
October 30, 2007
Red Sox Parade today HiWired open normal hours
Today is the Parade celebrating the Red Sox Victory in the world series a National State Local holiday.
HiWired will be open its normal 24/7 hours.
I on the other hand have the day off. HA!
I did expect Colorado to take at least two at home, but our young players really stepped up and put them down every time they came up. I like the look of Colorado and suspect with the young players they have we will see more of them.
Personally I would have given the MVP to Ellsbury but that's a minor quibble.
Its no surprise that we win a title with guys like this on the team:
To Red Sox Nation we’d like to offer our deepest and most profound thank you for making the last four years some of the greatest moments personally and professionally, of our lives. Much like the fans in Philadelphia, and Arizona, you always treated my wife and my children with respect. You were far better to me than I deserved at times, and never worse than I deserved at others. The only thing I know I can say without a doubt is that I took the ball, every single time, and never ever left anything in the tank.
Personally I'd give him a one year deal to work with the young pitching and perhaps hire him as a bullpen coach.
Anyways congrats to the Red Sox, let there be dancing in the streets:
And more dancing!
Posted by Peter at 08:42 AM | Comments (0)
October 24, 2007
Game 1 at Fenway
This blog wasn't here in October of 2004 so the World Series didn't come up. But our company is in Boston and the Boston Red Sox are our team so we will be blogging on the topic of the World Series a bit over this week.
The Rockies Keys:
Clutch Hitting
Colorado has managed to get the hits when they need them. If you look at their games this post season you see a pattern of coming through and holding on. Their victory vs San Diego to make the playoffs was one of the most improbable half innings since Dave Roberts scored from 2nd to tie Game 4 vs the Yankees in 2004.
Catch the Ball:
Its often forgotten that baring rain you need at least 27 outs to win a baseball game. Colorado's defense has been ungodly. A spectacular defense give a lot of leeway to pitching that isn't overpowering. To win this series this has to continue.
What me worry?
It would seem odd to have to tell a team that has had such a run to stay loose, but this is the biggest part of the big show. I'm reminded of the 1985 pre-Brady Patriots who during the Super Bowl dropped easy passes in the first quarter as the receivers seemed star struck. Their job is to win 4 before losing 3. Keeping a win streak alive is not the primary mission.
Red Sox Keys:
Patience:
The Red Sox are one of the most patient hitting teams you will ever see. That patience needs to remain in play. If you are going to get a ball past that kind of a defense you need force that pitcher to give you something good to hit.
Run baby run:
Colorado's catcher has a great rep for calling a game, not so great in throwing out runners. The Red Sox set a record for grounding into double plays in a series against Cleveland. Facing an even better defense they need to exploit that weakness when their speed is on base.
Starting strong:
This team is going to score a lot of runs, the key is going to be the 2-4 starting pitching. It is Vital that the Game 6 Schilling and Game 7 Matsuzaka show up rather than the game 2 & 3 model, (In fact I'd like to see more that 5 innings from Matsuzaka for a change). The loss of Wakefield due to injury is a big loss as the Rockies are not used to the Knuckleball so Lester is going to have to pick it up.
On paper this series should be no contest however games are not played on paper. (for reference see Fausto Carmona and C. C. Sabathia) I don't see this series going less that 6 games and seven games is a distinct possibility. Depending on how the series goes I would actually consider resting David Ortiz in game 3 or 4 at Colorado. It would be very nice to be able to bring him up as a pinch hitter in a clutch situation as opposed to a pitcher looking to get around him.
As for tonight I like the Red Sox. Colorado did well against Becket in the regular season but he is a post season monster. Also Manny and Mike Lowell feast off of left handed pitching so the match-up is very favorable today. If Colorado manages to take game one that all bets are off.
Posted by Peter at 12:39 PM | Comments (0)
October 21, 2007
Not in front of your TV for Game 7?
Here at HiWired we are 24/7 so a fair amount of our staff missed yesterday's game 6 Victory of the Red Sox over Cleveland.
Today I will be one of the unlucky ones who will miss game 7 tonight. If you are in front of a computer and want to keep up with the game the best site on the net to keep up with this or any other baseball stuff is David Pinto's Baseball Musings blog.
You can be sure that I'll have that window open in the background.
(Frankly I think its a mute point, Unless the long rest has thrown them off Colorado can't be stopped, they are playing the best baseball I've even seen by a team. But if anyone can do it the Sox can.)
Posted by Peter at 09:50 AM | Comments (0)
October 07, 2007
Life is good
The RedSox have advanced to the ALCS. The Patriots are now 5-0 and I'm on a mini vacation.
What more can anyone ask? See you all on Wednesday.
Posted by Peter at 11:32 PM | Comments (0)
October 05, 2007
New Wheels
As you may have read some time back I had a few issues with my last car which all started from Pepboys working on it and went down hill from there. This was a 2000 Grand AM SE.
Recently I felt the transmission start slipping a couple of times. Decided that I needed to inquire on the cost of getting another car. I had done a bit of shopping around the year before but didnt find anything in my budget.
I would like to take a minute and give the guys at Boch Toyota South a shout for really working hard to get me something I would enjoy having and pricing down to something within my budget. Should you be in the area and in the market for a car I would recommend asking for Derek Goncalves who after explaining my situation and car issues put a lot of energy into helping me out.
I will be following up with some car pictures. Stay tuned!
Posted by Hector at 11:02 PM | Comments (1)
October 01, 2007
Caramel Brie courtesy of Jane
We mentioned a few days ago how there are blogs for just about everything, well during conversation with a customer named Jane a few recipe blogs were pointed to and she volunteered this recipe, so Courtesy of your fellow customer Jane I give you Caramel Brie:
Take a wheel of brie, put in pie plate. Top with mixture of half a stick of butter and one half cup of brown sugar (and be sure to soften the butter before you mix it with the brown sugar). Pack on top and then add chopped pecans to cover. Bake for about 12 minutes at 400 then serve with water crackers--no other cracker will do.
My experience in blogs is once you start to talk about cooking and food it takes over the blog for a bit, lets see what happens.
Posted by Peter at 01:17 PM | Comments (0)
September 30, 2007
4 way tie possible
On this Sunday normally a day of rest or Football the spat of meaningful baseball games that was mentioned yesterday are mere hours away. Baseball Blogger extrodinare David Pinto gets down to brass tacks....
The Rockies trounce the Diamondbacks 11-1, gaining a game on the Phillies and the Padres. The four-way tie scenario is still in place as the three games that needed specific outcomes went the right way. Here's what needs to happen tomorrow:* Mets win.
* Phillies win.
* San Diego loses.
* Colorado wins.The first two happening means a playoff for the NL East title on Monday. The third happening as well means the loser on Monday needs to play at least one more game Tuesday. All four and the NLDS gets delayed. It should be an exciting Sunday!
There are blogs for almost everything that you might be interested in. PC's are my job but my minor in college was American History and my blog reading reflects that. One of my other passions is baseball. If that is one of yours then David Pinto's Baseball Musings blog should be required reading, particularly during the playoffs.
If that is not be aware that there is likely a blog for just about any topic that you might follow from Car blogs to Catholic blogs to Cricket blogs (the sport not the bug).
There is a whole world of blogs out there find one and enjoy it.
Posted by Peter at 07:11 AM | Comments (0)
September 11, 2007
The most valuable Sept 11 link there is
Well another Sept 11 has arrived. We talked a bit about Tom McDonough last year. As to what to say this year...
It's just my personal opinion mind you, but I think it only emboldens our foes to dwell on defeat, so I'm not planning any more anniversary posts after this one.
That being said there is one site on the web that should be read by people on this date; This one from Popular Mechanics. Money Quote:
To investigate 16 of the most prevalent claims made by conspiracy theorists, POPULAR MECHANICS assembled a team of nine researchers and reporters who, together with PM editors, consulted more than 70 professionals in fields that form the core content of this magazine, including aviation, engineering and the military.In the end, we were able to debunk each of these assertions with hard evidence and a healthy dose of common sense. We learned that a few theories are based on something as innocent as a reporting error on that chaotic day. Others are the byproducts of cynical imaginations that aim to inject suspicion and animosity into public debate. Only by confronting such poisonous claims with irrefutable facts can we understand what really happened on a day that is forever seared into world history.
You can't fix a computer unless you look at what actually happened. Ditto here.
Posted by Peter at 08:52 AM | Comments (0)
August 17, 2007
Very flat out again
We continue to be flat our around here and I just have no time for a post.
So I will leave you with this question. With vista SP1 due out shortly are you going to wait for the sp to be released or are you going to pick up a needed pc now?
I'd wait for the service pack myself.
Posted by Peter at 07:05 PM | Comments (0)
August 06, 2007
Sorry Jose
Very sorry to hear about Jose's tranny. I just did a tranny job on my car about a year ago so I know it's not cheap. Actually just got done paying off the loan to repair it. Luckily had some friends that knew what they were doing and basically did the job for me which and saved me tons of $$$. I helped by following instructions since I really had no real clue. I'm a tech not a mechanic. I actually ended up in the emergency room after burning my self while performing repairs. (Lesson: best to leave it to the professionals) I can not imagine the disappointment how ever of having it fail with all eyes on you.
I've also had my motor replaced in my car with less then 50K miles on the car. Thing really ran like a champ before in comparison to now. Had taken my car to Pepboys for maintenance including oil change, wipers, alignment, brake pads and might be forgetting couple other things. Wanted to prepare for a long drive. I didn't even get 1/4 mile down the road and motor was knocking. They denied any wrong doing and I ended up eating the bill for that repair as well. My friends kicked in then too and really can not thank them enough. They not only saved me a ton of money on repairs but for the 3 months it took to save up enough cash to get the car going again they let me barrow their cars. I do my own oil changes now.
Posted by Hector at 01:26 PM | Comments (0)
July 27, 2007
Vacation all I've ever wanted....
Well all good things must come to an end but in this case it is just starting my vacation that is.
I'm going to be gone for 10 days or so. I might get the odd post up if the mood strikes me, the laptop is near and the wife doesn't find me on it and kill me.
There are no guest bloggers here, just a lot of people who usually don't post, but you will be seeing regulars posts from some of the many other people here, believe it or not this IS a group blog.
Some you will be seeing for the first time, others have posted before but I'm sure you will enjoy the lot while I find time to finally finish the last Harry Potter Book and maybe read the other 5 ones I haven't tried yet.
Take care all.
Posted by Peter at 06:55 PM | Comments (0)
July 04, 2007
What happend to Tradition?
You thought we forgot our 4th of July tradition didn't you?
We'll we didn't, after all without our traditions our lives would be as shaky as a Fiddler on the Roof.
Unlike Tevye's traditions this one is not likely to change:
The Declaration of Independence of the Thirteen Colonies
In CONGRESS, July 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation...
The Declaration of Independence of the Thirteen Colonies
In CONGRESS, July 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. --That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. —Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain [George III] is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us, in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by the Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.
Posted by Peter at 08:26 AM | Comments (0)
IndependenceThinking
Today is Independence Day the national holiday.
As HiWired is 24/7 we are of course here and on duty. (No parades for me and I'll be missing the barbecue at our friends house but there's the drive-ins tonight!)
As always our thoughts on such a day are with our service men and women who are also 24/7 and will be missing the same and with the Gold Star Mothers.
We hope you have a fun and safe day and thank these people when you do.
Hey even Google remembered what day it was!
Posted by Peter at 08:05 AM | Comments (0)
July 02, 2007
What's so cool about the net; number 468,511
How about a view of the world one photo at a time?
This is the type of thing that makes the internet just awesome.
Posted by Peter at 07:16 AM | Comments (0)
June 11, 2007
More babies and weddings
As the number of members of the Hiwired family has grown the number of new members continues to grow as well.
We at HiWired would like to congratulate Liz from our sales team on the occasion of her child's birth.
We also congratulate Justin from our tech team on the birth of his son.
And I should also congratulate Chris K on the occasion of his wedding as well.
(I don't think I'm going to be able to keep up with all the social schedules much longer but I'll do what I can.)
Posted by Peter at 08:20 AM | Comments (0)
June 06, 2007
Some things not important to remember some too important to forget
This quote from last year proved correct.
It is worth repeating something we said at last years D-Day anniversary:
When you see an elderly man say in his 80's or 90 keep in mind that more likely than not when he was a young man he put himself on the line for us. Even if he didn't serve consider; we have 40 different types of flavored coffee to choose from, his coffee was rationed, as was meat and a lot of other things we take for granted.These aren't just old people; they are the reason why we have what we have today. Occasionally I'm asked if it's hard to take care of elderly customers. They might not hear or see so well when you talk to them etc. I say no, that isn't hard, what they did 60 years ago is hard and we owe them, big.
That holds no less true today
Posted by Peter at 10:15 AM | Comments (1)
May 27, 2007
In Honor of the day
As it is Memorial day tomorrow one website worth visiting is the site of Arlington National Cemetery, the final resting place of thousands of American Military and statesmen from the early 1860's to the present day.
What is often not known is that this is only one of many Military Cemeteries where American soldiers are interned. The American Battle Monuments Commission which operates Cemeteries around the world where that Americans have given their lives for their fellow man.
As you might guess this weekend the traffic on the site is pretty high but check this sub-link for some of the places that the commission maintains.
Posted by Peter at 05:52 PM | Comments (0)
May 23, 2007
Linux is it getting better for the average user?
I was at one of my favorite sites Slashdot and found this interesting article on Linux. I am not ashamed to admit I am not a big fan of Linux.There are too many flavors of it and installing a driver can make even the most technical of people (like me)go insane. You can read the article here
Posted by Chrisk at 11:14 AM | Comments (0)
May 20, 2007
Classic
It's stuff like this that makes YouTube one of the best sites on the net.
Posted by Peter at 09:54 PM | Comments (0)
May 06, 2007
Peter your getting lazy
You might have noticed that posting has become a tad more sporadic lately.
This is all because you have been kind enough to give us so much business lately that I really haven't had time for the blog. Customers come first.
Remember that we don't have a dedicated blogging team, the entire company has blogging rights. We just blog as we have time and have the interest to do so.
Rest assured I'll try to keep up more with the blog, but the customer with a problem will have to trump the blog if there is a conflict.
Posted by Peter at 12:03 PM | Comments (0)
April 30, 2007
Congrats to our old pal Andy and Tara
In our early blogging days Andy was known to write an article or two over here.
My old friend is no longer with the company, but right now is in Mexico honeymooning with his brand new Bride Tara who he married on Saturday, you might remember he announced the engagement here.
We wish the best to Andy and Tara and wish them a lifetime of marital bliss, and as my Pal Roger told me when I got married.
A word of advice, when you get angry don't throw the expensive stuff.Words to live by
Posted by Peter at 08:52 AM | Comments (0)
April 28, 2007
Blogs; a way to answer directly
Curt Schilling demonstrates the advantages of a personal blog:
If you haven’t figured it out by now, working in the media is a pretty nice gig. Barring outright plagiarism or committing a crime, you don’t have to be accountable if you don’t want to. You can say what you want when you want and you don’t really have to answer to anyone. You can always tell the bigger culprits by the fact you never see their faces in the clubhouse. Most of them are afraid to show themselves to the subjects they rail on everyday.
All of this is in answer to a sports writer who claimed (since retracted)the blood on Schilling's Sock game six of the 2004 ACLS (Red Sox v Yankees) was fake.
The blog allows a figure like Schilling to answer direct without filter, as usual he puts it out there:
Remember this, the surgery was voluntary. If you have the nuts, or the guts, grab an orthopedic surgeon, have them suture your ankle skin down to the tissue covering the bone in your ankle joint, then walk around for 4 hours. After that go find a mound, throw a hundred or so pitches, run over, cover first a few times. When you’re done check that ankle and see if it bleeds.
I'm surprised we don't see more stuff like this from sports figures.
Posted by Peter at 07:29 AM | Comments (0)
April 05, 2007
What a difference a day makes
Yesterday there wasn't a flake of snow on the ground. This is my street this morning 8:45 am:
Posted by Peter at 09:19 AM | Comments (0)
April 02, 2007
Passover, Holy Week and Opening Day
Today begins the 8 day feast of Passover which will run through the 10th.
As always we wish our Jewish Customers a happy and holy Passover.
Also this is the start of Holy Week which began yesterday with Palm Sunday culminating in Good Friday, the end of Lent and Easter Sunday.
As always we wish our Christian Customers a happy and holy Easter and Holy Week.
Here in New England a more secular holiday takes place as the Boston Red Sox Open their 107th season.
However we aren't celebrating:
In his first start since the Royals gave him a club-record five-year, $55 million contract, Meche went 7 1-3 solid innings and led his new team to a 7-1 victory over the Boston Red Sox and an ineffective Curt Schilling.
Oh well, we have 161 more chances to do better.
Posted by Peter at 09:37 PM | Comments (1)
March 24, 2007
Podcasts really come of age
How do you know that the podcasts are the wave of the future? When the British Prime Minister is on one
Posted by Peter at 03:55 PM | Comments (0)
March 07, 2007
The advantage of old stuff
When your kid tells you they need the newest IPOD or Cellphone and can't live without it, remind them that the new stuff is what people are looking to steal. If they want an example a great one is this story about Rent-a-Wreck.
Although the car may not always start on the first attempt, the poor suspension makes for a touch of lumbago and the petrol gauge only starts to show consumption when you've clocked up 200 kilometres (apparently a design flaw in the older models), motorists can take comfort in the knowledge that no Rent-A-Wreck customer has ever been carjacked.When it comes to theft, the cars are also viewed as undesirable - only about 10 have been stolen in as many years, says Apex sales manager Naughty Ajodha, a tiny number considering the 85,964 incidents of car theft each year in South Africa. (Emphasas mine)
That works out to slightly more than 1/10,000th of 1% of car thefts in that country. And consider it is a lot harder to steal a car than an IPOD or a phone.
Remember the purpose of the device is what's its used for. If they want status, let them raise their grades so they can get a job that provides it.
Posted by Peter at 08:54 AM | Comments (0)
March 05, 2007
The BBC at YouTube
CNET reports that the BBC now has a deal to share content with YouTube:
The BBC, BBC Worldwide and YouTube today announced the beginning of a partnership to offer Internet users across the world new and innovative ways to experience and enjoy BBC content through YouTube.
This non-exclusive partnership will create branded BBC "Channels" on YouTube operating under separate BBC and BBC Worldwide agreements.
I guess that means if Nick Gusburne wants to get back to YouTube he needs a BBC job.
YouTube users have their own protests up.
Posted by Peter at 01:33 PM | Comments (0)
February 19, 2007
Happy Washington's Birthday (Sorry Mr. Polk)
Today is a federal holiday. It is commonly called President's day but in reality if you check the law and this site, you will find that it is in fact what was always celebrated when we were kids. Washington's Birthday:
This holiday is designated as "Washington's Birthday" in section 6103(a) of title 5 of the United States Code, which is the law that specifies holidays for Federal employees. Though other institutions such as state and local governments and private businesses may use other names, it is our policy to always refer to holidays by the names designated in the law.
So with apologies to James Knox Polk, Bill Clinton, Warren Harding and my own favorite Grover Cleveland; today is Washington's Birthday (celebrated actual day Feb 22nd).
We don't, in my opinion, appreciate Washington as much as he deserves. He was both a man of and a man ahead of his time.
HiWired as always will be open all day today for all your support needs.
Meanwhile enjoy the day off and the shopping but give the history a thought. Remember if he had been of a different temperament we might be celebrating the birthday of the first of our Royal line.
Update: Speaking of "presidents" day I was reading today that President John Tyler's grandson still lives in the family house that he purchased. This wouldn't be so odd except John Tyler was born in 1790 and his grandson is still alive. To get an idea of this when Mr. Tyler's grandfather was still alive the Constitution still had not been ratified by all 13 states, George Washington was in his FIRST term as president, Ohio was the wilderness, Florida was a part of Spain, King Louis of France still had his head and Napoleon was in military school. Supporting links are here and here.
Posted by Peter at 12:28 PM | Comments (0)
February 17, 2007
Patriots play tag
The New England Patriots have placed the franchise tag on Asante Samuel. If he agrees we will have him in our lineup for at least another year. If he decides to sign a deal with another team and the Patriots do not match the offer. New England will receive 2 first round draft picks from that team. Let's hope the two sides can come to an agreement.
Posted by Chrisk at 10:26 AM | Comments (0)
February 16, 2007
Beginnings are the most fragile time
Well, hello! My name is Roland, and I will be blogging today -- Peter is "wikked sick", and not in a good way! Please join me in wishing him a speedy recovery!
Anyhoo, it was recently Valentine's Day, one of the few days of the year which tend to focus our thoughts on beginnings (or endings, as it may be), and since I've recently started at HiWired, I thought I would volunteer for blog duty. And what do you know, there is a new Microsoft operating system out, another beginning; I have seen more than a few of our customers struggle with learning the ins and outs of Vista, so here's a tip that I've picked up while working with them... say that you're trying to run ipconfig /flushdns so that you can get a new IP address at the command line prompt, and Vista says:
Elevation is required for this operation
First, find the executable file. You can search for the executable file by going to the Start menu, and going up to Search. Put in the name of the program that you are trying to use, ie Command Prompt, and then click Search.
When the search has run, right-click on either the entry which indicates the executable file (designated by the ".exe" appendation) or on the shortcut to the executable file, and choose "Run as administrator". The program will now launch, and you should be able to make changes as needed!
Posted by at 04:55 PM | Comments (1)
February 14, 2007
Basic fact
Kathryn Jean Lopez at the Corner states a basic fact about Telecommuting.
Good news for you.
UPDATE: Unless Slashdot is right:
"'We assumed total absentees of 30% to 60% trying to work from home, which would have overwhelmed the Internet,' said [one] participant. 'We did not assume that the backbone would be gone, but that the edge of the network... would be overwhelmed..."
Of course they are talking about more than snow and ice.
Posted by Peter at 06:21 AM | Comments (0)
February 12, 2007
Posted totally without comment
Via Wil Wheaton. (Yes he is that Wil Wheaton)
Posted by Peter at 03:42 PM | Comments (1)
February 08, 2007
The License agreement or job description matters
On more than one occasion we have commented on the importance of reading a license agreement before agreeing to it (particularly with freeware)a person needs to know what they are getting into before they jump in and be sure that the agreement is compatible with what they need or want to do with their machine.
Another example of this is frankly this blog. You will note that my postings widely vary in terms of time, some are pretty long some are just quick links and some (like this one is going to be) are long rants.
My job is to support customers. Right now I'm not on the clock and won't be for another 4 hours or so. During the day if a customer comes in then that trumps the blog. I'm paid as a tech support the blog is an extra thing that we do.
The blog and the podcasts are "value added" and promotional services. We make our living by selling our tech support. Here at HiWired our primary job is to fix your PC, Mp3, word document etc, etc, etc. The costs of the blog and the podcast are paid for in the same way. If the blog stopped tomorrow we would still be here getting Vista machines to see wireless networks, cleaning spyware off systems and finding documents that aren't recovering in Word.
I and the other people who post here understand that we are a business and our goal and stated aim is to serve the customer and make our profit. That is how a business survives, the day we lost sight of that is the day we start to decline. If the blog inhibited that basic business goal then it wouldn't be worth having.
This brings us in a very round about way to the big news scandal in the blogosphere regarding Presidential candidate John Edwards' campaign appointing a blogger in chief. The campaign has taken some considerable heat over the past writings and statements of said blogger. Right now Ms Amanda Marcotte (any relation to Don Marcotte of the Bruins?)is the #9 search term in Technorati (which still says we aren't posting) There are roundups in several places on the net my favorite of course being here but our interest in the entire episode is really a function of how the blogosphere and the risks and rewards thereof.
We have often talked about free speech here, a personal blog is one of the greatest forms of free speech ever invented. In such an environment one can say what he or she things to the world and can accept the accolades and slings and arrows that come with it. Suppression of such speech is a sad thing and we have argued against it on many occasions.
When you get a job, things change, a person with a job has not only a particular job description, but the proposition that they are hired to help the company achieve its goals is inherent to the whole process.
A presidential campaign has a single goal; to elect their chosen candidate. If an employees actions aid that goal then it is a wise hire if not then it isn't. This is the final decision that the Edwards campaign has to make concerning Ms Marcotte.
Ms. Marcotte also has two things to consider: If her primary goal is employment, then it is just a question of persuading her employer that she is a valuable member of the team. If her goal is the election of Mr. Edwards then she has to consider if her presence is more valuable outside the campaign than inside.
All of this goes back to the idea that the internet speech however free it might be has costs and responsibility. If you write something, put something on the web, or do something foolish that ends up on a cell phone camera, a potential employer can do a google search and pull it up. In my own experience if you googled my name before May of last year the primary result would be Amazon reviews. If you google it now the primary result are people arguing over a letter I sent Glenn at the end of May instead (I've been too busy and frankly not inclined to write reviews lately). For good or ill that that is part of my face on the net and a stranger who goggles or yahoos me will judge accordingly.
So remember this when you are e-mailing, posting, commenting etc. To paraphrase President Truman the internet is a kitchen, when you use it prepare to deal with heat it produces and the splatters and stains that come with it.
Posted by Peter at 08:37 AM | Comments (0)
February 04, 2007
wow
Totally flat out today will post as soon as possible.
Posted by Peter at 12:56 PM | Comments (0)
February 02, 2007
One final Posthumous thank you
At our one year anniversary I posted the following:
There are a lot of things that go into making a business a success, but the most important thing is you!So thanks to you all, Ronald, Shirlee, Eldonna, Doc, Ruth and all the rest of you (much too many to name)for your loyal support. We look forward to serving all of you for many years to come.
Well I just found out that two of our oldest customers Ruth (mentioned above) and James passed away recently.
There were regulars here and gave us their loyal support at a time when we were much smaller and trying to establish ourselves. This means an awful lot when your company is new. We got to know them both well. All the old timers here worked with them at one time or another.
Now the company has grown by leaps and bounds and the number of new faces around me boggles the mind. If it wasn't for people like Ruth and James who gave us that start and told others about us this would not be the case. We might be one of those many companies that gave it a good shot but never quite made it.
Ruth, James; Thank you very much. You will both be missed.
Posted by Peter at 03:24 PM | Comments (0)
January 24, 2007
Here comes another one
As per this post Melissa proves that she is a supervisor by being exactly on time with her 2nd child; Emma Elizabeth who joins Peyton Olivia as a January baby meaning there will likely be a single birthday party each year around the 15th or so until one or both get married.
We at HiWired wish her the best. (If the company keeps growing as it has been we may need a category devoted totally to births and weddings).
Posted by Peter at 10:49 AM | Comments (2)
January 15, 2007
Martin Luther King Day
Today is Martin Luther King Day a National Holiday.
HiWired will be open our normal hours from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. EST.
Something I've noticed about today.
If you are old enough you might remember before MLK day we used to have two February holidays, Lincoln's Birthday (Feb 12) and Washington's Birthday (Feb 22). To make room for MLK day (any additional holiday is expensive since it is a day state and local governments have to pay employees without working or pay overtime to essential workers.) those two days were combined for a generic President's day.
I seem to remember Washington's birthday was a big deal when I was younger, Lincoln's less so but Washington's was always treated with some reverence.
It seems to me that both of the newer holidays are not treated so reverently. Other than the lack of traffic today seemed very much normal. I saw trash trucks collecting today, and people don't seem to be involved at all in the spirit of a holiday.
President's day is even worse. It's basically become a big sale day for car dealers who are celebrating the life of the likes of John Tyler and James Buchanan
I sometimes think Dr. King's day gets short shift because it displaced Washington and Lincoln. That is unfair to his legacy since it was congress' decision not his. I personally think we should bring back Washington's birthday, that way we can celebrate two great men Washington and King in two months. When a society celebrates heroes, those people who made a difference they give their children something to aspire to something greater than the high score on Grand Theft Auto.
Now HiWired is open every holiday day so the fact that we are here today isn't so odd, but it is something to think about.
Posted by Peter at 09:15 AM | Comments (0)
January 13, 2007
Technology Advances
Ever notice that some new technologies cancel out old standards. For example, since the cell phone, when was the last time you saw a phone booth? Alexander Graham Bell probably could not have predicted the reliance our modern culture has on phones, not to mention that your phone can now replace your personal computer, mp3 player, cameras, and much more. Remember the days when you had to buy and develop film? Not anymore, Digital imaging took over that field, now photography has become considerably cheaper, or when you had to rewind the VHS before returning. But with digital media, you can store shows and movies on a hard drive connected to your TV. When Cellular One first introduced their digital cell phone, I wrote a paper about it for my electronics class, and coined the phrase: "Technology shows the advancement of society." Now, What's next? What is going to be the next greatest invention that changes our way of life?
Posted by ChrisDu at 09:35 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Mopeing the sequel
Well this year I managed to make it to the world series but I am forced to offer my congratulations to Ken Anderson (New York Mets) who defeated me 4-1 in a barnburner of a series which included 4 consecutive extra inning games of 12, 23, 14 and 12 innings, a 10 run 9th inning comeback to tie a game and more excitement than I remember in the 19 years of this league.
As I said last year if you live in central Mass and have an interest in face to face tabletop baseball are are willing to pledge yourself to a once a week 26 week league post your e-mail here or contact iGamespot here.
Posted by Peter at 09:24 PM | Comments (0)
January 08, 2007
Ouch my aching tooth
My blogging will be light for a couple of days as I had some unpleasant dental work done.
Meanwhile the boss and Troy are in Las Vegas at the same show that Glenn is at.
Hopefully the other guys will pick up the slack, particularly since we have so many new ones.
P.S. I of course didn't mean this show.
Posted by Peter at 06:13 PM | Comments (0)
January 02, 2007
National Day of Mourning
Today has been declared a national day of mourning for the late President Ford who died at the age of 93.
HiWired will be open our normal hours 9 a.m.- 2 p.m.
HiWired offers our condolences to the Ford family and thanks them for the decades of service to the country by the late President.
What is most interesting is he was born into an era where flight and radio was in its infancy and died in an era with Computers are a everyday item and space travel while not common doesn't give us a second thought.
That's amazing!
Posted by Peter at 09:01 AM | Comments (0)
December 27, 2006
Too sick to drive not too sick to work.
This morning I was scheduled to be in the office, however I found myself coughing and vomiting up a storm.
If I worked at any of my previous jobs I would have called out spent a fair amount of time in bed and generally put putted around the house.
However we now live in the age of telecommuting, so today I sort of called out. I won't be in the office today, but I will be working my normal shift from home so my cough won't be the only thing that is productive about me today.
This is one of the great benefits a company gets from this type of policy. My voice will be a tad off if you call but I can still point and click with the best of them. Nobody in the office will catch whatever I have.
It also leads to the idea that work is the default position. Let's be honest. Many people use sick days as extra days off. When you are able to work from home people have the tendency not to do that.
Will it be the wave of the future? What do you need to make it work, well you can check our old podcast Telecommuting for some of the answers to those questions.
Posted by Peter at 08:37 AM | Comments (0)
December 26, 2006
Happy Boxing Day & Kwanzaa
Today is in addition to being the 2nd day of Christmas is Boxing Day (St. Stephen's day) which is celebrated in Canada, England, Australia & New Zealand.
Today also marks the begining of Kwanzza the newest of the December Celebrations (although Festivus was not known to the general public it was celebrated in at least one household as early as 1966 the year Kwanzza was invented).
To all our customers who celebrate them we wish a happy Boxing Day and Kwanzaa.
To those customers of ours who celebrate Festivus (and considering sales of Festivus poles some just might) sorry we missed you on the 23rd, you can add that to next years Festivus ritual Airing of Grievances.
Posted by Peter at 08:39 AM | Comments (0)
December 25, 2006
Merry Christmas from HiWired
Today is Christmas Day a National Holiday in the USA and the first of the Twelve days of Christmas Season that runs to the Feast of the Epiphany (the coming of the wise men) that falls on Jan 7th this year (traditionally Jan 6th).
If you've ever wondered why many Catholics keep their trees up till then, that's why.
HiWired will be open today from 3 p.m. EST to 2 a.m. EST. That should give everybody plenty of time to enjoy their Christmas dinner before they start trying to get that iPod to sync, that Zune to convert movies, that printer to connect up wireless or to set up the internet security for that new laptop you just got.
Tomorrow HiWired will resume our standard hours for 9 a.m. EST to 2 A.M. EST.
As always if you don't celebrate Christmas then as always we say: "Have a nice day".
Posted by Peter at 11:47 AM | Comments (0)
December 23, 2006
It's a wonderful post
Much to my own shock I have Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off for the first time that I remember in years.
Because of this my blogging will be a tad light (at least by me but I have high hopes for the others).
Meanwhile enjoy this story about an American Movie Icon who's fame comes from only a few minutes of screen time:
Everyone who saw the movie remembers Zuzu. She gets to say, "Every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings." And the petals from Zuzu's rose — stuffed into a pants pocket by Jimmy Stewart's George Bailey as he comforts his sickly daughter — become a symbol of life.Grimes laughs about the petals getting more screentime than she did. But she has parlayed her six minutes in the beloved 1946 film into a late-life career. After enduring heartaches that make George Bailey's troubles look small, she has become a feel-good ambassador for the film and one of its last living links.
Posted by Peter at 05:41 PM | Comments (0)
December 15, 2006
Happy Hanukkah from Hiwired
Sunset tonight marks the beginning of Hanukkah the Jewish festival of light. Details here here here and here.
An interesting thing is there are apparently several different spelling of the day. This is quite useful to me since I can't spell to save my life.
This Hannukkah will continue through December 23rd. To all our Jewish Customers we wish a happy and Holy Chanukah.
To our non Jewish customers we say as always, have a great week.
Posted by Peter at 01:05 PM | Comments (0)
I'm right next to you.
Techs in general love there technology and use it whenever possible, however there are times when it is just not necessary. that tends to drive me nuts.
One of my pet peeves is when I am sitting next to or behind somebody and they say "Hi" in a chat room. I tend to turn around and say "I'm right here!". If you are on the phone with a customer that's one thing but just talk to me if I'm nearby.
Do you have a tech pet peeve? Send it in!
Posted by Peter at 10:35 AM | Comments (0)
December 14, 2006
Amazon comes through!!!!!
You might remember a couple of posts concerning Amazon.com and a customer service issue I had. They had agreed to either refund me shipping or get the item out when promised.
Just got an e-mail. The item in question was shipped today.
This makes three years that I've used Amazon at Christmas and they've always come through.
Posted by Peter at 02:46 PM | Comments (0)
We're all moon maidens now
Apparently Igniteblog suggests that Glenn Reynolds might be a Cypher for big drug companies, sort of a pseudo moon maiden.
I guess that's one way to get a quick instalance.
Glenn shouldn't feel bad though according to Technorati you still aren't reading this, as we haven't updated our site for 226 days. Looks like they didn't read our last post about this in September, but then again how could they read it if it never happened?
I guess that makes me a Moon Maiden too.
Update: remember when I'm talking about Moon Maidens I don't mean this one.
Posted by Peter at 10:49 AM | Comments (0)
December 11, 2006
Why Karem Amer matters here
A blogger in Egypt Karem Amer has been jailed for a month for what he posted on his blog:
Blogging became Amer's outlet - and his downfall. When Al-Azhar officials discovered a blogpost criticizing extremist professors, Amer was expelled and his case referred to the public prosecutor.Although a human rights lawyer accompanied Amer to his interrogation, prosecutors made clear they were indicting Amer for his beliefs...
...Amer would not retract his blogposts, so prosecutors threw him in jail - and laughed at the human rights attorney present, openly mocking the concept of standing up for individual rights.
Why is that important? Why does internet free speech and jailed bloggers constantly rate posts on a technical blog anyway? Let me explain:
Just over 21 months ago the company started this blog. The owners of the company shell out the hosting fees and purchased Movable Type. Although I've done most of the blogging every employee of this company who has worked here for more than 30 days has blogging rights (HINT HINT GUYS). Back in April we started our podcast interviews. Since September we have interviewed people outside of the company.
I have never had a blog post censored by my bosses. I have never had a podcast censored or been told what I can or can not ask. I have never been told to pull a post. I have been free to tell stories and give my opinions on various products.
A good example is this: You have never (and will never) hear me refer to this time as the "holiday" season. I say "Christmas" and will continue to do so. I will also say Hanukkah, Kwanzza, Boxing Day, Yon Kippur, Thanksgiving etc etc etc... Each of these days can stand on its own two feet. There is no reason to be afraid to name any of them. I have and will continue to wish our customers well on all these days that are celebrated, religious or secular. If you don't celebrate anything I'll wish you a nice day. In an era where people are so afraid of saying anything that type of public freedom is really special in a company.
Other posters have had the same privileges, I've disagreed with some but the posts haven't been touched. We've had comments that have disagreed and have even been insulting, we've edited out vulgarities but we haven't pulled the comments.
All of this online freedom is a function of: The classy people I work for, the freedoms given by this country, the technical invention of those who invented the net and all the tools I use and most of all to the willingness of my grandparents to come to a strange country 100 years ago not knowing the language or customs and working much harder then I ever have so I wouldn't have to. Odds are if you are reading this in America you can say the same thing, only the date of arrival will have changed.
We have been given much, to whom much is given much is expected. It's only a little thing to mention and object when others don't get that freedom that we all take for granted, but when we do we honor all those who have made ours possible.
Posted by Peter at 07:12 PM | Comments (0)
November 29, 2006
It will be there
Flat out today, my planned post will likely wait till I'm off duty but I will get it up before the end of the day
Posted by Peter at 02:48 PM | Comments (0)
November 11, 2006
We remember
Today is Veterans Day, (or Armistice Day the end of the First World War if you are outside of the US). A legal holiday.
HiWired will be open our normal hours from 9 a.m.- 2 a.m. EST.
Today we remember our Vets and our currently serving soldiers all over the world and say thanks.
A great way to say thanks the is Valour-It Campaign for disabled servicemen and women, that we've mentioned before, here are the current totals in their recient fundraising campaign, if you can spare a buck or two please do.
BTW if you want to send your donation by regular mail the address is:
Soldiers' Angels
1150 N Loop 1604 W, Suite 108-493
San Antonio, TX 78248
Posted by Peter at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)
November 10, 2006
See and honor them now while they are still here.
With tomorrow being Veterans Day I figured I'd link to this HotAir broadcast interviewing the surviving members of the fameous Doolittle Raid during World War II.
These flyers now all very old men did something extrodinary and the country owes them a debt of gratitude. Thanks to the wonders of internet video blogging we can bring them to you.
Every year our WWII vets die off leaving fewer and fewer, the net is a great way to perserve what they did so we don't forget.
Of course WWI vets are even rarer, with (according to wikipedia) 51 left alive world wide. Three live here in Massachusetts.
Posted by Peter at 03:16 PM | Comments (0)
November 06, 2006
A reminder about a worthy cause
Several blogs are involved in a fundraiser for the Project Valour-IT which buys voice activated laptops for disabled soldiers. The various blogs are divided up into a different team for each branch of the service.
We have talked about this charity before and consider it first rate so we would encourage you to consider a donation to one or more of the four teams (one for each service).
Of course we at HiWired do not have a favorite team as we have vets from different services working for us, but I'm making my donation to team Navy in honor of my father who served in the Pacific during World War II.
BTW if you want to send your donation by regular mail the address is:
Soldiers' Angels
1150 N Loop 1604 W, Suite 108-493
San Antonio, TX 78248
Posted by Peter at 05:21 PM | Comments (0)
November 01, 2006
The US is not the whole internet
With the political firestorm being reported on Drudge today I was interested in seeing how this is playing on Technorati.
Imagine my surprise when the #1 search item is Wee Shu Min a member of Parliament of Singapore who I don't know from Adam.
Apparently his daughter made remarks on a blog that were considered insensitive, this apparently caused a major scandal both concerning her and concerning his comments on her statements. If you want more details you can find them in blog posts here.
What seems to be amazing is this has been top of Technorati for quite some time.
Consider, the US is a country of 300 million people, Singapore has a million people and is basically one city. The US political firestorm involves a former and potentially future presidential candidate; the Singapore scandal involves the remarks on a blog by the teenage daughter of a member of Parliament. Yet blog post and search engines show that this is the big news out there. This shows without a doubt that the Asian internet is something to be reckoned with and explains the worries of states like China & North Korea.
The US may be the worlds superpower, but Asians are an internet force to be reckoned with.
Since in 6 months nobody might know what I'm talking about I'll link to the Pajamas Media roundup here.
Posted by Peter at 02:24 PM | Comments (0)
October 11, 2006
too much of a good thing
Very busy will be trying to post later.
BTW we don't mind being busy like this and thank you for your support, that's what keeps up in New England instead of New Delhi.
Of course they are having more fun.
Posted by Peter at 03:55 PM | Comments (0)
October 06, 2006
I'll give them three more days
I mentioned my Vartec hell on Sunday. I was promised a letter in the mail by yesterday, it still hasn't arrived.
I know I told you I'd give the whole story if they didn't come through but I think I'll give them till Monday before I vent.
As of today I have Verizon for my in state and out of state long distance. I'm paying more and a monthly fee. The extra money is worth it to see the back of them.
Coming from the cheap one that is quite a statement.
Posted by Peter at 06:03 PM | Comments (0)
October 02, 2006
A holy Yom Kippur
Today is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, A day of fast and prayer in the Jewish year.
We wish all of our Jewish customers and employees a happy, sacred and safe day.
Hiwired will be open our normal hours today. 9 a.m. EST to 2 a.m EST.
Posted by Peter at 09:18 AM | Comments (0)
October 01, 2006
St. Louis pulls it out, can Sony?
It figures I rib the Cards in one post and they manage to clinch on the last day of the season.
Of course it was a loss by Houston not a Cardnials win to make it happen, but it still counts.
No word on if Sony can salvage their season too, it doesn't looks good:
Sony Corp.'s concerns that its defective lithium-ion batteries could severely tarnish its corporate image prompted the electronics maker to announce Thursday it would recall all similar batteries for notebook computers.Sony fears reports that the battery could catch fire may alarm computer users around the world, but the firm did not release information on which models of computer use the defective batteries. Sony needs to do more to deal with the problem.
The cost of the recall will be a burden on Sony and deal a significant blow to the electronics maker, which is undergoing corporate rehabilitation.
Sony has been slow in responding to the problem since battery defects were first seen back in August.
They are going to have to hope for a loss by all of these teams.
Update: forgot to include the link to the story and then forgot to hit save so the update didn't get posted when I first wrote it. Now I'd better check and make sure I remembered to wear shoes today.
Posted by Peter at 05:17 PM | Comments (0)
September 20, 2006
ARRUGH matey
If you are talking like the title of this post you are a day late. International Talk like a pirate day was yesterday.
More details be here me hearties!
In a more serious vein Piracy has actually made a comeback to the point where weekly reports are issued as warning to ships, particularly in the south asian seas. The last reported incident was only 3 days ago!
Britanica online has more on the subject.
Posted by Peter at 09:32 AM | Comments (0)
September 16, 2006
Glenn's missing blog
During our podcast Glenn Reynolds commented that the blog he misses the most is Steve Den Beste's USS Clueless.
The good news is that Mr. Den Beste is still blogging at Chizumatic although the topic (much to the delight of Eric) is Anime.
The better news is that the archives of the USS Clueless are available here.
Posted by Peter at 12:36 AM | Comments (0)
September 14, 2006
These are the people in my neighborhood
Over the last 18 months I've mentioned The local Butcher shop (Romano's)and the corner Coffee Shop (Brownie's Tea and Talk) more than once. However I've never bothered to show you the places.
Well now that I have my Lexar your wait is over:
On the left is Romano's Market, On the Right is Mr. Mike Romano. Mike has been running the place as long as I can remember. He is there 6 days a week first thing in the morning and often leaves after closing making his sausages and other meats. If you come in on a Saturday you will almost certainly see one or more of his sons along with his daughter working. You've never seen a man put in so many hours so regularly. There are hundreds of people in the area who are going to be lost when he retires:
On the left is Brownie's Tea and Talk, on the Right are Annie and Sue. Annie DiMartino owns the place. Since coming to America from Ireland she has spent most of her years serving people as an advocate for the homeless, City Counselor or through her work at DSS. She has the distinction of being not only ABC News' first "Person of the Week" but had that honor twice. Her decades here hasn't cost her the distinctive brogue of her youth. Sue works here on the 4 days the coffee shop is open. Both are very friendly can tell or listen to a story well but will also tell you what they think and aren't shy about it. Both have more street smarts in their little finger than I have in my whole body. Note the old fashioned counter. Note the teacup in the background. All the tea is served on her own China (unless you have a special mug) and she has over a dozen different types of tea. If a customer, particularly an elderly one needs a lift or something one of them invariably will leave to give them a lift. Annie makes all her own food from scratch from Liver and Onions, to Lamb Stew. If you get a hamburger or steak and eggs the beef will come from Mike next door. All her eggs are organic and from local farms.
Both places are right out of a Lileks post. They are very retro (with the exception of the available wi-fi),and neighborhood oriented. They are slow places in this hurry-up world of ours. If you don't have a place like this in your city, you don't know what you're missing.
Posted by Peter at 04:03 PM | Comments (0)
September 11, 2006
Oh my God I'm OLD
Forget the history of the day. I'll always remember today because its the day my son shaved for the first time.
Posted by Peter at 06:38 AM | Comments (0)
A little history
Today being Sept 11th there are going to be a lot of posts by a lot of people more eloquent than me concerning what happened that day, how we should reflect and/or act as a country and all that stuff.
Our company is located just outside of Boston. Any one of us here could have been on any one of the planes that left from here. That fact isn't lost on any of us. We remember not only those who died but the fine work of the police & fire people in NYC, after all as my parish priest reminded us this yesterday 48,000 people got out of those towers alive and those who help make that possible deserve a bow.
However I'm going to turn away from the whole topic for a moment. The president rightly said that the events aboard