I recently purchased a 12-port, powered USB hub – because you can never have too many USB ports!

I ordered it from monoprice.com, as I’ve had good luck with them many, many times – if you buy cables from anyone else, you may as well be flushing money down the crapper. Good stuff, and cheap.

So, I got the hub, hooked it up.

Almost immediately, a problem: Any shift of the hardware would make the power flicker in/out or just out. And this is a device that one’ll be nudging a lot, plugging in/removing USB devices.

Not good.

The problem is that the power connection to the hub – on this particular unit – is poorly designed/manufactured. The power connection is a female, which slides over a male prong that is housed in the hub. But the fit isn’t snug: There is wiggle room both in the male/female connection and, most problematic, in the hole in the hub the female end plugs into.

Disaster.

I bent the male plug, which fixed the problem, but … for how long?

I wrote to monoprice.com (and yes, I did point out my long history with them), and very shortly thereafter received an email saying they were shipping me a new unit, and providing an label to ship the bad unit back.

Nicely done!

Sadly, I got the new unit, and it’s a product design flaw. Same “lack of tightness” issues. I’m going to return the new one (the old one has been working fine since my “fix”).

So – kudos to Monoprice for acting so quickly and decisively to address a customer concern.

And a wag of the finger to Monoprice for selling this flawed a product. Monoprice 12-Ports USB 2.0 Hub, MG_HB2012

Well, yesterday Romy and I went to the Naperville Art Fair, which is a yearly event on Naperville’s Riverwalk – a series of parks/paths along the DuPage River in the midst of the downtown area.

I’ve never been to this art fair – one of the bigger ones in the northern/western Chicago burbs – and, to be honest, I’ve never been to Naperville. I’ve heard a lot about the town, especially about the riverwalk, but never been.

Naperville seems to be doing something right: There is a mix of the old and new buildings in the downtown area, and the parking is easy to get to and free. The riverwalk, in particular, is genius. I saw a before and after picture of the river’s edges, and, well, so much better now. Nicely done.

Overall, Naperville seems to be making an effort to woo folks to the downtown area – parking, riverwalk, plantings – that are not inexpensive but may be loss leaders. Even during the crazy day of the art fair (a big deal), the town seemed accessible, prices not jacked up and so on.

Smart.

What follows, in no particular order, are some impressions of Naperville or the Naperville Art Fair.

I’ve been looking for answers to such and such hardware/software questions over the last week or so (in reference to a bunch of issues), and – thankfully – the InterTubes had the answer (or the hint so I could figger it out for myself).

Thanks InterTubes.

I used to buy a lot of computer books – I have/do program in a slew of environments/languages – who can remember how – for example – to format a date in {whatever}? Or substring correctly, sort an array and so on?

Hence the books.

Now it’s the web.

The last issue I had took some hardcore searching, but I finally got what I needed. Whew!

If you search for it, it will come…

Long story short: Setting up a new Windoze box: Wanted an FTP server (just for LAN).

I’ve done this before…easy.

GuildFTPd just, well, doesn’t work on Win7 (great on WinXP).

After, well, too much work, I’ve gotten Filezilla FTP server running on the box.

Long time fan of the Filezilla client; new to the server.

Server is not as good as GuildFTPd – my take.

But it works, is supported…and I like OSS!

I’ll say this about FTP servers: Yes, you must be a geek to install same. GuildFTPd came close to not requiring same, but all servers require some tech savvy. Not like downloading a Flash Update.

I’m still testing the Filezilla server; updates as events warrent. But going well thus far…

But honestly – would prefer GuildFTPd: Great program. Gives me exactly what I want. Oh…well…

Update 9/19/2013 – FileZilla just works; my only complaint is that it isn’t GuildFTP. Hmmm…..

Update 10/10/07 -For reasons that I cannot figger out right now, it appears the FileZilla FTP server does not accept the following type of mask – more than one “?” which means single match. As in, show “2??.txt” which would match “212.txt” or “233.txt” but not “2.txt” or “21.txt” and so on. Seems to support single “?” – single char wildcard. Hmmm….changed the multiple “?” to “*” and stuff worked, but…not happy. More bulletins as events warrant…

WATCHING:
Too Big to Fail
Starring: (everyone)

Let’s get beyond the obvious: This made-for-TV (HBO) is filled with stars. Amazing.

But what’s more amazing is that the story is very well told – another movie about the housing, subprime, derivative or whatever meltdown of 2008. Bottom line, no one saw this coming.

Not the companies that would be bailed out (AIG, for example).

Not the companies that were allowed to fail (Lehman Brothers).

Not the government entities/personnel that we all entrusted to, uh, make sure stuff like this didn’t happen.

While I don’t disagree with the decisions Paulson – and others – made in real life (I don’t necessarily like some, but sometimes there’s only a bad choice and a really bad choice…), but this movie – to me – highlights that the choices were made because the hand was off the tiller for so long. It could be due to deregulation of financial firms (signed under Clinton; championed by the right), of which Paulson was a big part. Or it could be due to, well, people are idiots. Why would real estate drop? Nah…

Good movie; I can’t vouch for the veracity of its contents. If even close to the truth, well, be very afraid.

All movies

We had a good March – a little weird in that there was about a week of 70 degree weather. Then is got appropriately colder and (sometimes) wetter.

Here in the early part of August, we are looking at a horrible summer.

Virtually no rain. Hotter than hell – many 90°+ days. The hostas are dying – and that’s a bad sign.

We did get some rain yesterday. And since it’s been about a month (honest) since I cut the grass, I cut it today.

What a joke – hard to tell where I’ve cut (little green; just seed heads and weeds). More like cutting straw, especially in the front yard (less shade).

As I said, when hostas are suffering, things are dire: they are tough plants.

This is the weakest year for our Monarda (bee balm), Rudbeckia (Black-eyed Susan) and other so-called Prairie plants, that are supposed to handle hot/dry weather.

Obviously, only to a certain degree.

Our Joe Pye Weed – another Prairie plant – is still doing well, but it’s a bigger plant with deeper roots.

I like our yard in summer, with the bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. Not so much this year. Sad.

Let it rain! To be honest, it wouldn’t matter that much at this point. We need a moister winter (not too cold, please) to get something in the water table, and then a normal spring. April showers and all that.

But ya can’t fix weather; you can only roll with it. Let’s see what we gets.

Brown bears hunting salmon in Alaska.

Live.

I can watch the bears catching salmon in an Alaskan river from my couch.

Thank you intertubes!

I didn’t realize that brown bears are bigger than grizzly bears – I thought the latter were the big guys. Nope.

I learned something today.

And had fun with the web cam. Awesome.

I’ve been listening to, uh, different music lately…

Dylan – Live at the Gaslight

This was a Starbucks exclusive – for whatever reason – and I picked up same there.

A lot of the songs are on bootlegs; but, still, one of my fav Dylan albums – where he is, with his own and other’s songs – getting his voice.

Feufollet – En Couleurs

I first heard a cut from this album/band on NPR; tossed in my Amazon cart and – months later – purchased same. Well worth the wait. It’s good Zydeco or whatever music. Me likes!

Regina Spector – Soviet Kitsch

As I believe I’ve written before, I first ran across Spektor on the 500 Days of Summer film. Liked the music; bought the soundtrack; really enjoyed the two Spektor songs.

Now I own five of her CDs!

Emmylou Harris – Red Dirt Girl

I don’t know why it took me so long to “discover” Harris, but I’ve only been listening to her for a year or two – ditto for Patty Griffin and Nanci Griffith, both who are – to me – cut for the same cloth as Harris.

And what I’ve been missing! I have numerous CDs, but this one – Red Dirt Girl – is my (current) fav. “Bang the Drum Slowly,” “One Big Love,” “Michelango.” The whole CD is incredible.

PJ Harvey – Songs From the City, Songs From the Sea

Someone I worked with introduced me to Harvey – not quite sure why, but I’m glad he did.

I ripped a couple of CDs he had to see if I’d like her; I do. I’ve now purchased 8-9 of her CDs; all are great, but this was my first, and it’s still my favorite.

But it’s got a lot of competition, believe me!

Twelve too many – and that number may well rise: The latest estimates report 71 shot (including the 12 dead). Once again, a disturbed individual has literally torn apart dozens of lives – victims, families, friends.

Even those just reading/watching about it and recoiling in horror.

Maybe it’s the movies, maybe it’s the books
Maybe it’s the bullets, maybe it’s the real crooks
Maybe it’s the drugs, maybe it’s the parents
Maybe it’s the colors everybody’s wearin
Maybe it’s the President, maybe it’s the last one
Maybe it’s the one before that, what he done
Maybe it’s the high schools, maybe it’s the teachers
Maybe it’s the tattooed children in the bleachers
Maybe it’s the Bible, maybe it’s the lack
Maybe it’s the music, maybe it’s the crack
Maybe it’s the hairdos, maybe it’s the TV
Maybe it’s the cigarettes, maybe it’s the family
Maybe it’s the fast food, maybe it’s the news
Maybe it’s divorce, maybe it’s abuse
Maybe it’s the lawyers, maybe it’s the prisons
Maybe it’s the Senators, maybe it’s the system
Maybe it’s the fathers, maybe it’s the sons
Maybe it’s the sisters, maybe it’s the moms
Maybe it’s the radio, maybe it’s road rage
Maybe El Nino, or UV rays
Maybe it’s the army, maybe it’s the liquor
Maybe it’s the papers, maybe the militia
Maybe it’s the athletes, maybe it’s the ads
Maybe it’s the sports fans, maybe it’s a fad
Maybe it’s the magazines, maybe it’s the internet
Maybe it’s the lottery, maybe it’s the immigrants
Maybe it’s taxes, big business
Maybe it’s the KKK and the skinheads
Maybe it’s the communists, maybe it’s the Catholics
Maybe it’s the hippies, maybe it’s the addicts
Maybe it’s the art, maybe it’s the sex
Maybe it’s the homeless, maybe it’s the banks
Maybe it’s the clearcut, maybe it’s the ozone
Maybe it’s the chemicals, maybe it’s the car phones
Maybe it’s the fertilizer, maybe it’s the nose rings
Maybe it’s the end, but I know one thing.
If it were up to me, I’d take away the guns.

— Cheryl Wheeler, If It Were Up to Me

I don’t know if taking away all the guns would help much – these guns were purchased legally; shut off that venue, and they’ll be purchased illegally. Someone planning genocide is not going to have qualms about stepping around the law to purchase weapons.

Wheeler has a point – there are a lot of potential targets at which to point fingers. And I sure don’t have the answer about the cause. This is not a rant against guns per se.

But this peculiar flavor of American insanity has got to stop. Somehow. Soon.

Marissa Mayer is the new CEO of Yahoo!

I’m late to the party, but full on-board that this is a good thing.

Really.

I’m now (sorta) jazzed about Yahoo!, where previous to this, Yahoo! seemed to be circling the drain.

Veddy interesting….

My predictions (and I know nothing):

• There will be layoffs – sad, but true. Necessary.
• Focus on Flickr, Yahoo Finance
• Slow elimination of the whole portal concept
• Big guess: Dump Bing; partner with Google for search/ads (why not go with the best?)
• Big hope: Like Carol Bartz, I hope she tells an interviewer – at some conference – to “fuck off” or some such pushback.

Update 7/19/2012: As expected, Mayer’s compensation package with Yahoo, is, shall we say, generous.

Again – expected. Big bucks for big job that two recent CEO hires – Carol Bartz and Scott Thompson – have failed at. And they did well financially, as well.

And Mayer can’t jump into the ring/shark tank without the unstated announcement that, while she’s a zillionaire (from Google), she doesn’t work for free. Want what I gots? What will the market bear?

My final thought: If Mayer succeeds, it will be big – Yahoo! back (in some way). Could be huge. So the compensation doesn’t matter.

If she fails, Yahoo! is dead – sell off the parts. To me, this is Yahoo!’s last chance to be significant. And so, again, the compensation almost doesn’t matter. Write down the loss…

Personally, I hope Yahoo! succeeds.

Update Deux 7/19/2012: I’ve read/viewed a zillion reports about the Mayer transition, but some – I won’t point fingers – emphasize that she is a “she” (female). And since the report that she’s pregnant emerged, it’s gotten a bit more XX vs. XY oriented.

Here’s my take: I liked what I read about Carol Bartz; she failed. I didn’t know anything about Scott Thompson, but he seemed – to me – “meh.”

I didn’t care about Bartz’s or Thompson’s gender; I don’t care about Mayer’s.

Mayer has chops; she could make the difference. That’s all that matters.

When the first iPhone came out in June, 2007, I was in lust. I wanted one, but I just didn’t need one.

But I understood – even way back then – that this was a seismic event, an introduction that changed everything:

Do I think this changes everything about cellphones, as has been the general buzz?

Yep.

The one striking thing I note when I read reviews about this product is that the reviews are not about a cellphone, the reviews are about a mobile device that does A, B & C – oh, and you can use it as a phone, as well.

I do think this is a watershed moment in cell phones and all mobile devices; I’ll be interested to see what Apple does next (3G, for example) with this device.

And that’s the key – it’s not a cellphone.

It’s a device. A handheld computer.

— iYawn

I was thinking about my thoughts from that distant day when I recently ran across an excellent John Gruber article over at daringfireball.net. As part of a review of another article, he lays out his vision of the iPhone:

The iPhone is not and never was a phone. It is a pocket-sized computer that obviates the phone. The iPhone is to cell phones what the Mac was to typewriters.

[…]

The iPod’s success fooled almost everyone (including me) into thinking that Apple’s entry into the phone market would be similar. The iPod was the world’s best portable media player; the “iPhone”, thus, would likely be the world’s best cell phone.

But that’s not what it was. It was the world’s best portable computer. Best not in the sense of being the most powerful, or the fastest, or the most-efficient to use. The thing couldn’t even do copy-and-paste. It was the best because it was always there, always on, always just a button-push away. The disruption was not that we now finally had a nice phone; it was that, for better or for worse, we would now never again be without a computer or the Internet.

Well put.

And Gruber goes on to link to a story from back in the day saying how RIM was screwed, because the mobile market was moving to mobile computers, not phones or messaging devices. And look where Apple and RIM are today. Apple’s on top of the world; RIM’s in the crapper.

It really is stunning how fast this market has changed – smart phones today are not just devices with a phone, but they are cameras, instant messaging platforms, ereaders, gaming consoles, have Photoshop-like apps (Instagram, Camera Awesome) and thousands of other apps so you can make the device whatever it is you want. Even in the heady days following the iPhone launch, I don’t think many would have thought we’d be where we are today in just five short years. It’s mind-blowing.

What’ll the next five years bring? Well, faster connectivity, hopefully better battery life (thank god for Mophie cases!), probably thinner cases and better cameras…

But what’s the feature out there that is not just an improvement, but a radical departure – as the iPhone was from the other hot phones of the time, Motorola’s Razr and RIM’s Blackberry? Will the form factor change? I loved my flip phone, and I really don’t want a bigger phone (bigger screen is nice, but bigger form factor: no). What if very thin smart phones were flip phones? Or slide outs? So the carry-around form factor is half of what it is today, but opens to your typical smart phone form factor? That’d be interesting.

What else could be coming down the pike? I’ll bet that at least one of the disruptive ideas that comes along will seem obvious once it’s adopted. Like touch screens for phones.

It’s been a fun ride, and it’s not over yet…

Photo © Apple.com; cropped