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Allowing Keybase Finder file access on macOS Catalina

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macOS Catalina has a number of security features that prevent the running of malicious code. However, it can inadvertently block useful software too. In this case, it’s blocking the FUSE kext that Keybase uses to access the encrypted files stored in the cloud. Normally, you can go into System Preferences / Security and allow usage but in this case, the GUI would not allow access. The first...

Home Made Temperature Sensors

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Using a NodeMCU and DHT-22 temperature sensor I was able to leverage the ESPHome project to make some temperature sensors to keep an eye on garage freezer temperatures. The wiring of the DHT-22 from left-right corresponds to the following on the NodeMCU: VIN, Gnd, D2. A basic configuration for the sensor is: esphome: name: garage_freezer1 platform: ESP8266 board: nodemcu wifi: ssid: "SSID here"...

Visiting Seattle

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We just got done visiting Bainbridge Island and we’re waiting to drive our car onto the ferry for the trip back to Seattle. The weather has been fantastic thus far. I think if I don’t get the job offer from Amazon everybody is going to be disappointed (myself included). Amy loves Bainbridge Island. I’m not so sure about the commute to downtown. We found some nice places in...

Upgrading a RAID-5 Arrary

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I’m in the beginning stages of upgrading my Linux software RAID-5 array that’s used to store all kinds of content.  I’ve currently got a 4 drive array (320G drives in a 3 drive array with a hot-spare) set up in my home server.  One of the drive finally died the other day (4 years old or so) and as expected, the hot-spare kicked into service.  I could lose another...

The Plus Side of Hyper Inflation

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…at least when inflation (and possibly hyper-inflation) comes after our “stimulus” kicks in, it’ll be simple to pay off my debt. Granted, that wheelbarrow full of money that I just used to pay off my house will only buy a loaf of bread.  That will be 100% awesome!!! Does anybody really think that spending 875 billion (when the bulk of it doesn’t even hit until...

An Evening with the Neal Girls

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Kelley, Melissa and Jennifer were in the Bay Area this weekend. Their parents, Tim and Jean, were sometimes surrogate parents for me when I lived in Germany. Even though I have lost contact with them all over the years, I still think of them with incredible fondness. Amy, the boys and I drove down on Saturday afternoon for a really nice evening in Palo Alto. They were all willing to meet us...

“Integrating” WordPress and Zen Cart (and PHPList and Sphider)

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I’d been toying around with the idea of re-doing An Afternoon to Remember’s web site with a real shopping cart instead of the PayPal freebie one that I had been using. Since the main site’s content was already built using WordPress I checked on some shopping carts that were WordPress plugins. Unfortunately, none of them really met my needs. I eventually settled on Zen Cart as it...

Amy’s New Site

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I’ve been working on a new web site for An Afternoon to Remember using WordPress for content and Zen Cart for the shopping cart. There is no really good way of integrating the two, so I’ve made a common theme for them based on the new flyer design. I’ve also been looking to move away from the mailman based mailing list and am looking to use phplist. To that end, I’ve been...

Can Global Warming Hysteria Please Just Die?

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I hate all of the hysteria around “man made” global warming. I’m all for using energy from non-petroleum sources, but the environmental wackos saw fit to kill nuclear power back in the 70’s and 80’s. Solar is not a viable option due to the inefficiencies of the process. Hydro is fine, but there is only so much of it. What really kills me are the stupid “flex...

The Challenge of Industrial Design

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With Amy’s business I’ve had the opportunity to work in the professional publishing world. Over the last year we’ve self-published her cookbooks and designed new tins for teas. I like to think that I’m somewhat technically competent, but dealing with professionals in those arenas was a very humbling experience. I simply don’t know anything about those worlds. As...

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