A couple more rules...

Dumb question (if there is such a thing)... Do brute force attacks use databases of words sorted in alphabetical order? If so, does having passwords that begin with z (or zzzzzz) buy some time? Does putting a symbol (@&$?£¥#%!) at the end make the pw appear later or earlier in a brute force listing, versus a symbol…

For us, it's 60GB of high bitrate MP3s on the HTPC, backed up to an external USB drive. Never considered the cloud for anything other than transfers (dropbox free account serves our needs well). My only gripe is long term security, hence I have 2 x 3.5" disk enclosures, and every couple of years the 500GB disks used…

For me, it comes down to the science underlying the phenomenon, and by science I mean actual hard numbers published in peer reviewed journals.

I beg to differ in one specific area - hospital acquired infections. There is very solid evidence that hand washing by nurses and doctors has significant impact on whether patients get sick in the hospital. The primary reason is that most people walking in the door are immune suppressed for some reason. This is…

Refunds are for dummies. You're lending the government money, interest free, and then getting back your own money 4 months late. Instead, cut your contributions so you come out even at year's end, or even slightly behind so you write the government a small check. Make 'em wait for it!

Last names don't matter, first names do.

I disagree. The best time to buy a house is when it feels right for you, not some one-size-fits-all rule. An example... in the early part of last decade we got a 30 year fixed 5% interest mortgage, with just 5% downpayment. As a result of being very aggressive with extra payments, the loan was now paid inside 10…

If anyone asked me that in an interview, I think my temptation to respond in a python-esque German accent... "vee ask zee qvestions round here!" would be too much. Comedy aside, I think the question belies a deeper mis-understanding on the part of the candidate, and a failure to adequately research the position. If…

Quick question for which I have yet to find a solution on iOS...

Some pretty heavy duty therapy there!

I guess in my field (academia) there's a fine line between self promotion and coming across as an arrogant DB. I've certainly been turned off by applicants who are just a little bit too sure of themselves. At the same time, debbie downers are not going to get the job either. As with most things, finding a happy…

Sulfites in wine are a common cause of headaches. Many organic wines don't use sulfites, and there are plenty of non-organic with "no sulfites" right there on the label. They might work for you.

Nobody NEEDs a new iPad, especially if you already have Gen1 or Gen2. However, when Apple releases a new product, the earlier generations tend to show up cheap on fleaBay. So, if you have a Gen1 iPad, I'd suggest trading up to a used Gen2 for not much money. If you already have a Gen3, save the money for the…

In the life sciences at least, grad school in the US is free, and they pay a stipend (albeit a paltry $20-25k/yr). So yes, it is worth it if you can offset 5 years of "lost" salary. Of course, as a starving academic 15 years out from his PhD, I can't recommend it highly enough!

As the owner of an iPad1, bought for less than half price when they launched the iPad2 last year, I love people offloading their new-ish gadgets. I'll happily take a <1 year old gadget for a fraction of the cost.

Depends how fast you need it to be. For gaming, definitely no. For regular usage, a number of USB port replicators which run on "Display Link" 3rd party technology, will let you run the main laptop screen plus another one through the VGA port, plus a third one through USB. The refresh is often laggy though.

The iLUV anti-glare protectors are pretty good IMHO. They make the iPad much more usable as an e-reader (with the kindle app in sepia color theme).

Meh, I wasn't that impressed by a number of the points.

My thoughts would be marginal on not mentioning childcare. If the interviewer balks, that's pretty tantamount to discrimination, especially if the candidate is female. Same for age - if the interviewer really gets irked by it, they're being age-ist and can be prosecuted under federal law. What next? Don't mention…