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You've probably seen the signs hanging around your place of business, or maybe you've seen ads in the newspaper promoting a way to get rid of your old computer. "Donate your computer to a third-world school!" or "We recycle your old monitors!" Those seem like noble ideas, but they also beg the question: What is actually being done with your trash?
In general, I'm not a huge fan of inspirational books. I think that people have become enamored with novels like these because they need motivation to make something out of their lives. But, more times than not, once they've put the book away, they revert back to their usual lives and don't make any changes. Not only that, but many inspirational books are too shallow and bland to reach the surface of giving people hope.
Remember that email you sent to the random senator about spending money to build igloos in the desert? The bad news is that I don't think the interest groups can raise the $200 million you need for research funds. The good news is that the email could be read again 60 years from now and will never be deleted.
I've been a computer programmer for quite some time now, but I've never actually been to a programming conference of any sort. That has changed now that I'm attending the DC PHP Conference on Nov. 7-9. The first day of events went about as I expected, considering that there's a lot I need to learn about the tools I use at my current job.
Many people are familiar with the movie "Catch Me If You Can," which describes the early life of Frank Abagnale and his ability to change identities at a moment's notice. Some know this was based on a true story, and even fewer people know that Abagnale worked with the FBI for 32 years to thwart identity theft.
Batteries don't seem to last long these days. Even if you have rechargeable batteries, they lose life the more you use them. My information on batteries is a little outdated, as I haven't graphed circuits since college.
One of my friends sent me a link the other day to a site that claimed to plant trees while using its search engine. The Ecoogler seems like a good idea, and a worthy cause, but it takes just a few minutes to realize that maybe it's not.
It was a simple idea: Go to the store, grab a bag of circus peanuts for a friend and be on my way. After wandering aimlessly through three stores, though, I learned that even the greatest tasty snacks can disappear all too quickly.
Once again, there is proof people ACTUALLY read my column, even years later! The first time I visited Seattle, I wrote a column about many of my experiences there (click here to reminiscence). I also mentioned a car I saw, covered entirely in floppy disks. I asked readers to put me in touch with the driver.
Well, the driver found me ... here's her response to the column:
The definition of "friend" has been watered down a bit with the advent of online social networking. It seems that now, your friend might be someone with whom you've never met, even someone with whom you've never communicated, with the exception of a simple button click on a website. This can be a good way to meet people, but it's a bit weird to call a person a friend when it's quite possible the individual on the other side could be an enemy, a fish or a hat.