Miscellaneous Discussion Thread

Quote: DRich

If anyone is not up by 6am wake them up. They are wasting the whole day away.

Almost all of the adults I know get up by 6am anyway.

You need a better class of friends. I like to be well-rested for Happy Hour. I'm rarely out of bed before the crack of noon.

Quote: billryan

You need a better class of friends. I like to be well-rested for Happy Hour. I'm rarely out of bed before the crack of noon.

I am in bed before 9pm 90% of the time. And most of my friends are drinking around 5pm on weekdays and 10am on weekends. Us drunks go to bed early. I think I have been up past midnight once in the last 10 years.

Quote: DRich

I am in bed before 9pm 90% of the time. And most of my friends are drinking around 5pm on weekdays and 10am on weekends. Us drunks go to bed early. I think I have been up past midnight once in the last 10 years.

Sometimes I don't even go to bed till 6am. I don't think I have had the same schedule for more than a week or so in many years. I cant remember the last time I slept for for than 6 hours at a time.

requesting tech help

would like to know what the 3 buttons on the left bottom and 4 buttons on the right bottom of my 6 year old Lenovo flat screen desktop do - what is their function?
curiosity has gotten the better of me
could not find out from googling
did not want to mess with them because I've done that on other computers and it was hard to get back to the default

thanks guys:


left bottom:





right bottom:

Quote: lilredrooster

requesting tech help

would like to know what the 3 buttons on the left bottom and 4 buttons on the right bottom of my 6 year old Lenovo flat screen desktop do - what is their function?
curiosity has gotten the better of me
could not find out from googling
did not want to mess with them because I've done that on other computers and it was hard to get back to the default

thanks guys:


left bottom:





right bottom:

My guesses are....

On the right: The button with the arrow is called something like a DDC or CCD, it helps make it easy to connect, control, communicate with and use your monitor/display(or its just and input button). Perhaps the one with the slash a on/off button or perhaps the input button, not sure (I would defiantly touch it) The arrows are probably for scrolling though menu options (I assume for the monitor)

Are you sure "the buttons on the left are actually buttons? the one on the far left should blink off and on when your computer is using the hard drive. The one n the middle is for Wi Fi

Many manufacturers make user manuals available for different models online. Maybe here:

https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/us/en/

yeah, thanks Axel and rx
you're right - on the left its not buttons just indicators
I don't think I need anything on the right - was just curious

The buttons on the right look like they could be menu navigation buttons, possibly to adjust the display (color, brightness, etc.).

My guesses, left-to-right, are:
Enter Menu
Scroll Left/Adjust Lower
Scroll Right/Adjust Higher
Exit Menu

Quote: lilredrooster

requesting tech help

would like to know what the 3 buttons on the left bottom and 4 buttons on the right bottom of my 6 year old Lenovo flat screen desktop do - what is their function?
curiosity has gotten the better of me
could not find out from googling
did not want to mess with them because I've done that on other computers and it was hard to get back to the default

thanks guys:


left bottom:





right bottom:

Left bottom are status lights not buttons.

First light is disk activity, second is WiFi, not exactly sure what the third is. If there are buttons there its probably to turn WiFi off.

The first button on the right is to switch the input source on the monitor. The other two are to navigate the monitor settings menu.

Anyone think those paid robocall blocker services are also the same company that makes robocalls?

Quite possibly! Those we deal with criminals who have encrypted your hard drive don't recover yours, they pay loer ransoms!

Have you noticed that at the moment the latest post on the forum does not appear at the top of the "Recent Threads?"

the world's greatest gaming authority advises pit critter on BJ AP strategies
he's all about game protection

My friends (commissioners son And cousin) moved to china to run a business. One drove from the gobi desert to the coast.

https://www.quora.com/What-do-poor-people-in-China-eat?fbclid=IwAR0Iihl2mKiYLb452KvMXIzU7CQ0FsfOF0Q0DMJd9ltQyZwt1pjfnvb-Ouo

......

At Lowes, I hear a car crash. I look towards the bushes and see that a car crashed into a tree. A man walks across the parking lot grabbing his knee. Then two girls walk across the lot. Unmarked Police car sees abandoned car and blocks street. A couple walks over and asks me if those two girls walked from the crash. I say "yes, and there was a third man dressed all black." Couple walks over to the cop to talk to him. After I pick up some parts. I drive down the block and see unmarked police car detain the two girls. Ambulance is treating someone, probably the man dressed all black.

so the two girls were not seen near or inside thevehivle at al.

The car crashed into a tree next to a sidewalk in front of tall bushes. I saw all three walk through the bushes where the car was abandoned.

The street was busy. Cars driving by had a better view.

It all happened fast. The cop that showed up a minute later didnt see them.

Lowes have those parking lot cameras. They are most likely on video.

This happened in texas not vegas btw.

They walked about 200 yards past a restaurant into a shopping center.

An ambulance was 50 ft away from the girls.

Quote: lilredrooster

Alpha Zero, a machine learning algorithm from Google has broken new ground in computer chess, crushing one of the most powerful bots, Stockfish, that was out there before it appeared on the scene. I've been crushed by Stockfish Bots many times. my chances against this thing are not good

kind of interesting, to me, anyway
Stockfish has struck back
when I posted this there was a Stockfish 10
now there is a Stockfish 12
and according to various chess chatterers it can now beat Google's Alpha Zero
from one of the chess chatterers:
























"There exists a large misconception that AlphaZero is the strongest engine, when for a few years now we have had engines stronger. In this post, I'll try to show how far we have come from AlphaZero.


Here are the results for Stockfish NNUE with the network bySergiocompared to AlphaZero.
We know that AlphaZero is +52 Elo to Stockfish 8 according to the papers released by Deepmind. +155-6=839 (SF8) +52 Elo.
We know Stockfish 11 is +166 Elo to Stockfish 8, with Stockfish 12 Dev being 30 Elo stronger at +196 Elo.
And based off of a recent test from myself between Stockfish NNUE (Sergio 2138) vs. Stockfish 12 Dev, I found that SF NNUE is +67 Elo to SF12Dev.


And so, with that, we get these conclusions
- Stockfish NNUE is +211 Elo to AlphaZero.
- Leela Chess Zero ID 64341 is +151 Elo to AlphaZero
- Stockfish 12 Dev is +144 Elo to AlphaZero"



Stockfish is derived from Glaurung, an open-source engine by Tord Romstad released in 2004.




the very, very powerful Stockfish 12 bot is available to use at this link, to beat, as far as I know, any other bot out there:


I just used it, and it crushed chess.com's maximum bot which is above what they term "super Grandmaster"




https://nextchessmove.com/

Everything is bigger in Texas.

Mexican gangs are impulsive and don't think ahead. They steal from whomever. They harrass with delusional entitlement. They impulsively confess and leave their mark. They infiltrate companies ( alarm co., car dealers, tow co., etc.), and organizations. I recount that we were defamed on local TV the exact same day I moved to Austin and move in date - oct 1, 2010. There is a gang for old ppl called "Texas Pride." When I returned 3 years later, the violations started again within a week.

Quote: jjjoooggg

Mexican gangs are impulsive and don't think ahead. They steal from whomever. They harrass with delusional entitlement. They impulsively confess and leave their mark. They infiltrate companies ( alarm co., car dealers, tow co., etc.), and organizations. I recount that we were defamed on local TV the exact same day I moved to Austin and move in date - oct 1, 2010. There is a gang for old ppl called "Texas Pride." When I returned 3 years later, the violations started again within a week.

Which is it? Are they impulsive or do they plan out their crimes by infiltrating companies long before the crime. How do the Mexican gangs compare to the Korean gangs or the Italian ones?

Quote: billryan

Which is it? Are they impulsive or do they plan out their crimes by infiltrating companies long before the crime. How do the Mexican gangs compare to the Korean gangs or the Italian ones?

Both. Ive witnessed firsthand. A gang/worker told my my bookkeeper that he was going to “find a way” if we didnt pay his speeding ticket. Gang members use their regular jobs. We would get burglaries every time i left town. I realized i only set alarm when i leave town. We have monitored alarm system.

Mexican gangs dont seem to need a reason to target. When i came back from college. I got a death threat in spanish over fone “muerte” and wall high graffiti. Gang DetectIve came out. My Twin bro was murdered 26 years ago. I believe that a young ~18 yo ex worker who was eating out with my bro And disappeared afterwards is connected to His murder. Cops all said impossible for suicide. But ruled as suicide. My bro never got involved in crime or drugs. Cops told our investigator that he was drug dealer bc of bank acct. we have proof he worked min wage since he was 11 as owner son.

We have never got mad argued or conflict of interest with gang. This separates them from other gangs.

When they tried to steal my 3 year old car from dealership for repairs. Dealer manager had tow co take to yard as abandoned written on paperwork. Subaru said That they didnt know about my car and nothing in system. I contacted. Owner of dealership. He said it took a split second for them to tell him which tow co. They lost key and i had to wait an hour while owner or manager was with his friends.

When delivery truck with only 5k miles in for warranty work stayed at dealer for 6 months. They said it still needed work. I had to get another dealer i bought truck from as witness and chevy out of state headquarters to release truck.

When we installed 15 camera system. Installer twice refused to point camera to street after he heard we were trying to catch drive bys. He also didnt install license readable camera

We had a drug addict/worker claim to be friend with health inspector. The worker wanted to stay past closing to work on floor. Everyone witnessed that wasnt on inspector list. One year later. Inspector complained why we are taking too long on floor bc we did everything Else. That was first time he mentioned floor. I cant proof that worker is gang. But most gang members tell many their gang Affiliation and share gang stories to me and workers.

I believe the murder Case of my sister and two nieces may have been thwarted by gang members. We had too many traffic cases reported incorrectly by cops. Insurance co asked me to amend traffic report. The cop stonewalled the process by never calling me.

Mexican gangs get to emotional. If they spent as much energy in a career they'd be rich maybe their brains are fried on drugs. I see cars parked on the highway next to us. Cars driving thru lot. Its hard for our workers to see entrance. I use mailbox as marker. For a couple years every time i open storage. Only 5 min for car to park in fromt of it. It stopped about 6 months ago. It takes years for gangs to forget about us. I had aN old mexican martial arts teacher. He said gangs start over superficial reasons.

I was in chl class The teacher told us a carjacker said “give me my money”. Before he shot her.

I dont like mentioning race but they have targeted us too much through other service co. and Institutions And as workers and customers.

https://youtu.be/yJ8FmWTa9CM

Korean rooftop man claims LA riots were started by mexican gang.

https://youtu.be/OCYT9Hew9ZU

This dealer is not going to have a very good job recommendation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEKmukXEfRA

New topic (I hope) -- at least I can't remember whether this has been discussed before, so I didn't really want to start a whole new thread.

Over at the Las Vegas Advisor site, today's question of the day is, "Where did the superstition about Friday the 13th come from?" Quite a few years ago, I heard a dubious explanation that led to a kind of puzzle that I thought might interest folks on this forum.

According to that explanation, Friday the 13th was considered unlucky because the 13th of the month falls on Friday more often than on any other day of the week. This leads to two points:

(1) Does the 13th of the month really fall on Friday more often than any other day of the week?
(2) Prove your answer to part (1).

From the first time I read this topic, some time back in the 1960's, I was confident I knew the answer to part (1), but I couldn't prove my answer. Then, sometime in the 1980's I stumbled across a way to prove it, pursued that avenue, and within a day or two was able to prove that I had been completely wrong in my original belief.

So ... What responses may I get from folks on this forum?

Interesting question. I would have thought the 13th would be evenly distributed across days of the weeks as I thought there was a cycle of each year a particular date falls on the succeeding day with two day jumps for leap years after Feb 28. But would need to think through whether that’s accurate.

What I had heard re Friday the 13th is something about it being a Friday the 13th when the king of a France launched his attack on the Knights Templar, leading to their eventual demise.

Quote: Doc

New topic (I hope) -- at least I can't remember whether this has been discussed before, so I didn't really want to start a whole new thread.

Over at the Las Vegas Advisor site, today's question of the day is, "Where did the superstition about Friday the 13th come from?" Quite a few years ago, I heard a dubious explanation that led to a kind of puzzle that I thought might interest folks on this forum.

According to that explanation, Friday the 13th was considered unlucky because the 13th of the month falls on Friday more often than on any other day of the week. This leads to two points:

(1) Does the 13th of the month really fall on Friday more often than any other day of the week?
(2) Prove your answer to part (1).

From the first time I read this topic, some time back in the 1960's, I was confident I knew the answer to part (1), but I couldn't prove my answer. Then, sometime in the 1980's I stumbled across a way to prove it, pursued that avenue, and within a day or two was able to prove that I had been completely wrong in my original belief.

So ... What responses may I get from folks on this forum?

There's only 14 possible calendars, should be pretty easy to figure out. ( 7 calendars without a leap year, January 1 starting on each of the days of the week, and then 7 more with a leap year). The leap year calendars appear less frequently, so you'd have to do a weighted average of some sort. A calendar cycle occurs every 28 years.

A few years back, the really kool kids in NY used to display old calenders that matched up with this years. It was fun searching out old calenders that could now be used again.

Definitely clueless on proving it but below is wiki

The 13th day of the month is slightly more likely to be a Friday than any other day of the week. On average, there is a Friday the 13th once every 212.35 days, whereas Thursday the 13th occurs only once every 213.59 days.

Quote: rsactuary

A calendar cycle occurs every 28 years.

Our calendars don't behave nearly so orderly.

But you are making a nice start.

Quote: unJon

Interesting question. I would have thought the 13th would be evenly distributed across days of the weeks ....

Which is exactly what I thought for a couple of decades, with no way to prove it. When I eventually discovered a technique for proof (not a 28-year cycle, as rsanctuary suggested), I was really shocked that the answer was the opposite of my long-held belief.

Quote: linksjunkie

Definitely clueless on proving it but below is wiki
The 13th day of the month is slightly more likely to be a Friday than any other day of the week.

Yep. Even if you know the correct answer, rather than making the incorrect assumption as unJon and I did, the route to finding a proof can be frustrating.

Quote: Doc

Which is exactly what I thought for a couple of decades, with no way to prove it. When I eventually discovered a technique for proof (not a 28-year cycle, as rsanctuary suggested), I was really shocked that the answer was the opposite of my long-held belief.


Yep. Even if you know the correct answer, rather than making the incorrect assumption as unJon and I did, the route to finding a proof can be frustrating.

I suppose" Because God wants it that way" wouldn't be an acceptable answer.

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chair throwing dealer would do well in some pkaces!
kong ago, onedealer got hired because tackled acheater duing dealer9candidate;s audition.

M

...............


recently, I had a small restaurant refuse my $20 bill because it was old - pre 2003 when U.S. currency was redesigned
I was surprised by this
I think the owner of the restaurant probably feels his staff is not competent enough to determine if an old bill is counterfeit
in searching I found that it is legal for a business to refuse such bills

yesterday, I tried to make a cash deposit at an ATM and my old $20 bill was not accepted - the ATM spit it back at me


from now on, I will ask for new bills at the bank



https://www.wfmynews2.com/article/news/local/2-wants-to-know/can-a-business-refuse-your-money-because-its-old/83-488412614

Things l'd like.

A 4k touch screen the size of a Monopoly board which sits flat on your table and that you can load apps like a real Monopoly game or any other game and sit 4 people around the table.

Santa?

Ive been monitoring my moms driving. Shes going the limit. But i dont think her defensive driving is well. A year ago someone drove fast thru a right yield turn and hit mom. Cop thought he had green lite. Gave mom ticket. She does well managing And talking to ppl. But too gullible. We told her to have her eyes checked even though she doesnt Wear glasses. But shes stubborn.

Anyone ever AP one of those carnival style games which has valuable prizes that hang by strings where you get a shot at maneuvering a dull pair of scissors with the guidance system of a blind dragonfly and attempt to cut the string?

IMO, a tool like a wood file would be just as useful. You get a rub or two at the string hoping to put in the critical weakening stroke causing the release.

Also, does anyone actually evaluate such machines for their return?

When I'm 1400 miles away, water pipe cracked, sign light broken and red tagged for a fan motor,. What a coincidence.

The local AC shop said that the parts would come in the next day. It took 3 weeks. After, I posted on facebook that I got the parts online in less than a week. The local ac shop keeps calling me to pick up the parts. I drive to Houston or Austin for parts. No problem getting compressors.

Eligios Mexican restaurant was a successful restaurant chain for decades. When the father got sick. The son cooked and daughter waitressed. They were still busy and best tasting. I saw a sign closed down for non payment of taxes. Last heard, that She works at Kikos as a waitress. I believe that there was internal theft.

A gang member /worker said that the Kikos Mexican Restaurant owner is an "a*****e." Because he told him to go back inside. His IT guy told me that he is very paranoid of robbery. Let me guess, he was robbed.

Someone told me that his friends steal from a collision center because the owner goes hunting. That is so un American.

I told Merrill Lynch that I need statements to show how much I loaned the company. The assisstant kept saying that I only loaned 21 cents. My advisor got on the phone and said that he already sees a loan for 100k on the computer. My accountant wanted the proof of all loans. I finished binders of statements and receipts for 600k. He asked me why checks made out to personal names were for. Pavement companies prefer to be paid in personal name. And who the Toyota corolla and the toyota tacoma was for, work vehicles.

My bookkeeper doesn't see the personal accts statements. She said that it is impossible for us to go bankrupt. I am the only one who can see how close we got. An employee said that a Mexican restaurant and burger king went bankrupt due to theft.

A lyft driver said that gas stations make most of their profit off of hand made food. It is the opposite. They make money on drinks and snacks. Gas station profit is twice fastfood.

I've reviewed video theft and camera disabling that I never reported to the cops. The employees don't know that I saw them on camera. Now, that I just installed a better camera system. I may not be so lenient. One disappeared. The manager never got his ID and social security card, because he was hired contract labor temporarily. Because we have a huge turn over.

I noticed shortages of supplies since 2015, cups, boxes. The work ethic has dwindled for 10 years. We get told ," I'm not paid enough to clean or pick up trash." I did for 15 years as a min wage cashier/cook including cleaning dining tables. They won't even spend 5 min to pour floor soap over night. The place is worse everyday.

I was advised to ask my lawyer for a change of venue.



A cop said that i must be making alot of money doing my own repairs. He said that “The math doesnt lie.” Mcdonalds breaks even with 4k sales/day. We increased from 800 to 2000 /day partially due to price increase. If i didnt do my own repairs wed be going bankrupt. I hear this all the time. People hate businesses owners

Someone walked up to me and said that she is moving to Denmark as a nurse.

When My friends see 4 cars in drive thru and Would always say that we are “slammed. “ That was 800/ day in sales. We were losing money.

I learned it is better to use a gatorade bottle. I pissed all over my pants last night

have to drive in the early a.m. - it's pitch black after the time change
lots of people out walking in black or dark clothes - they're very hard to see
if I hit one of them...........I'm going to jail.................................................................................................it's crazy

I've been tring to find the best pedestrian detection car. So far, I think Tesla and Nissan are at the top.

IIHS , "The Audi A4, BMW 3 series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Nissan Maxima, Subaru Outback and Volvo S60 have systems that earn superior ratings. They avoided collisions or slowed substantially in track tests."

https://www.iihs.org/news/detail/performance-of-pedestrian-crash-prevention-varies-among-midsize-cars

Quote: lilredrooster

have to drive in the early a.m. - it's pitch black after the time change
lots of people out walking in black or dark clothes - they're very hard to see
if I hit one of them...........I'm going to jail.................................................................................................it's crazy

I hate how early it gets dark here in Vegas
420pm and sun goes down
WTF
Living on the bad edge of a time zone
Used to live in Tampa. We got an hour more sun then NYC but still in same time zone
Living in Tampa is living on the good edge of a time zone

another question for you computer guys - you were so helpful in my last question
I have a 6 year old desktop running 8.1 - trying to keep it for as long as possible

haven't been able to install the latest MS important update - set to install automatically but it fails
tried to do it manually and it failed again several times

at this point, I'm probably not going to try anymore - unless somebody knows a fairly easy solution

how much am I at risk without installing any more updates?

I'm using Norton and have other security from Comcast - I'm hoping my risk won't be high

thanks

I only suggest this because my computer has had problems with peripheral gear attached. I have to disconnect my second screen before I update.

.......

............

I trashed my landline about a year ago
now, I have noticed that the cell has become like a landline in that I'm getting many spam, or scam calls from people I don't know
I don't answer them
but I noticed there is a difference: they don't leave a message on voice mail - on the landline they sometimes did

Quote:

TikTokers are sending their boyfriends and husbands into stores to ask for feminine products that don't exist.

They film the aftermath of the prank, where confused men walk out of the store empty handed.

I feel their pain.

Quote: jjjoooggg

I've been tring to find the best pedestrian detection car. So far, I think Tesla and Nissan are at the top.

IIHS , "The Audi A4, BMW 3 series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Nissan Maxima, Subaru Outback and Volvo S60 have systems that earn superior ratings. They avoided collisions or slowed substantially in track tests."

https://www.iihs.org/news/detail/performance-of-pedestrian-crash-prevention-varies-among-midsize-cars

My wife's Mazda has a very elaborate system. It even stopped us from hitting a dog.