Cheerful Curmudgeon

A complete lack of ideas and the power to express them.

Art Zemon's Blog Posts

American Airlines Gets a Clue

For a change, American Airlines is making a good business decision. Instead of whining about how it cannot run profitably, it is doing something about its bottom line: raising its prices. There has been lots of news coverage about the $15 fee which American Airlines is charging for the first piece of checked luggage. Good […]

Yes, Linux is “Ready for the Desktop”

It’s nice to read that Jeremy LaCroix at Linux.com agrees with me, though our phraseology differs a bit. Quite a few reviews of new Linux releases these days try to determine if a distribution is “ready for the desktop.” I myself have probably been guilty of using that phrase, but I think it’s time we […]

Assuming

Technology is challenging enough when we really know what is going on. The situation deteriorates rapidly as we progress through only thinking we know what is going on to being completely clueless. My step-mother just started using a computer, the first computer that has been solely hers, the first one where she can do whatever […]

Linux is Ready for Prime-Time

Is Linux ready to replace Microsoft Windows? You have almost certainly heard the question and you have probably wondered about it. You might even have tried Linux yourself and given some serious thought to switching. Most people avoid switching, though, not because they particularly care about the operating system but because switching would force them […]

Risk Analysis: NOT!

I just read a letter to the editor in my local newspaper. It begins, Are you kidding me? Jefferson Middle School says that no kids can bring peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch because there are kids with peanut allergies? Peanut butter is dangerous to the 1.3% of Americans who have peanut allergies. We […]

Shut Up and Let Me Drive

We all know that distractions make driving significantly more difficult and dangerous. Cell phones top the list, at least from lawmakers’ perspectives, and we now have laws in several states which limit cell phone use while driving. Sadly, lawmakers have not found a way to make children stop bugging their parents during car trips. “She’s […]

High Tech Windsock

Now I’ll readily admit that I’m no expert in windsocks. I’ve seen my share but never paid ’em much mind. I’ve certainly never delved into the technology which makes ’em work. Obviously, I have ignored somethin’ which ought not be ignored. I just read this NOTAM: Trenton NJ (Trenton Mercer) [TTN]: May NOTAM #5 Aerodrome […]

Moving Beyond TV

Thanks to Jeremy Zawodny for drawing my attention to Clay Shirky’s talk on the cognitive surplus. Shirky makes some excellent points. Give it 17 minutes of your time and watch. My comments follow. I agree with Shirky, we like to do more than we like to watch. That’s why it was so funny when Peter […]

Celebrate Earth Day

It’s Earth Day so celebrate. Go and get yourself a glass of clear, cool, refreshing water. Sip and savor the cool wetness as it trickles back along your tongue. Do your teeth feel cold, too? Take a deep gulp. Ahhhhh. That satisfies, doesn’t it? Now celebrate again because you didn’t pay $0.79 for that privilege; […]

A Rib for a Pickle

Sometimes you just gotta do it. You’ve got this thing going on and life is good and the moment comes and you make a commitment. That’s what I did; I made a commitment. I said it out loud, in front of witnesses, to my wife. Six of us were celebrating Cindy’s birthday. Even Cindy acknowledged […]

Casualties of War

For several years, my son planned to join the Army. As a father, I had mixed emotions: pride that he wanted to volunteer for a very tough job and fear that he would be killed… or worse. He and I had several discussions about the dangers; largely fruitless because teenagers believe they are immortal and […]

Plan would tax music downloads – San Jose Mercury News

Is a licensed, downloaded music recording your personal property? What happens when the state of California says that something is “tangible personal property” even though the EULA says that your rights are still restricted? How would California’s law impact interpretation of the first-sale doctrine as it applies to downloaded music and, by extension, software? All […]

Dream Computer

Candy and I have been watching the first season of Star Trek from Netflix. It’s great fun to see it large on the projector, and in color. Whoo hoo! David thought that Candy and I had completely lost it when we started humming along to the theme music during the opening credits: do do do […]

Man’s Best Friend

A dog is truly man’s best friend. Don’t believe me? Try this experiment: Put your dog and your wife in the trunk of your car. Shut the lid. After an hour, open the trunk. Observe who is happy to see you. If you try this, let me know the results.

The World’s Shortest Personality Test

Your Personality Profile You are happy, driven, and status conscious. You want everyone to know how successful you are. Very logical, you see life as a game of strategy.A bit of a loner, you prefer to depend on yourself. You always keep your cool and your composure. You are a born leader and business person. […]

Electronic Computers: What I Do for a Living

I have trouble explaining what my job is when I am talking to people who do not “surf the web.” Fortunately, Charlie, over at ModernMechanix.com has posted an article from the June 1958 issue of Modern Mechanix, which explains all: ELECTRONIC COMPUTERS – what they are and what they do AUTOMATION has given new importance […]

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