I "Built" a computer

In order to do some work at home I need a more powerful computer than my laptop in order to run AutoCad.  I'm not ready just yet, but I hope to also place adds for per contract AutoCad drawings for whoever wants to pay for them.

"Building" a computer sounds like quite a nerdy thing to do.  But in my defense, I knew almost nothing when I started, and my biggest problem came when I forgot to plug the power cord in. 

It seemed more complicated than I thought that it would be.  I had expected that most of the parts would have advanced to the point where they would be very simply labeled and obvious to plug in.  Maybe they are, but with names like "PCIe" I'm not sure that computer building is as easy as it might be.

In two, or three hours, of over thinking every connection, I had it up and running on my first try, with all connections, that I know of.

I still don't know much of anything about all of the computer parts, so I found some other guy's parts list and approximated his "build" for mine.

My computer's parts were based off of the computer parts from Return of the $750 Gaming PC Build.

Several changes were made, I don't remember them all, but one change was to use this case:



I also watched the following YouTube videos, which helped a lot:

I still know little about computers, but it seemed fairly easy to do.  Some things I learned:

• Its not "building" its assembling.
• There are a handful of parts that need to match.
• A modular power supply, whatever that is, might be preferable to my tangle of unused cables.
• Hardware assembly is easier than I was led to believe it would be..
• Cable management is easier than I was led to believe it would be (only the unused excess power cables are a mess).
• I still know little about computer software, and hope to avoid ever needing to.
• I've found another place to waste too much money on things like quieter fans.

Can you be right and a nut at the same time?

Race has something to do with it. A lifetime of mixing with East Asians has left me with the impression that the level of nuttiness there is somewhat higher than it is among Europeans. I don’t have much direct experience with blacks, but people who do tell me that high proportions of them believe in something crazy: AIDS is a CIA plot, a mad scientist named Yakub created the white race, O. J. Simpson didn’t kill his wife, etc.

Oh, and all those blacks being murdered in Chicago? Illinois State Rep. Monique Davis says it’s the cops:

There’s some suspicion—and I don’t want to spread this, but I’m just going to tell you what I’ve been hearing—they suspect maybe the police are killing some of these kids.

-Taki's mag

No time for posting

Fishing and work are filling my time too much this week.  Regularly scheduled programming to continue in a few days.

Politics is a Waste of Time

I used to spend too much time thinking about politics.  I wondered, for example, how incompetent all of our politicians must be since we never have a balanced budget.

But now that I've stopped watching TV, and therefore the news, and stopped exchanging comments with the commenters at the Huffington Post, it seems that I'm more relaxed about the whole subject.

Someone else: "Something happened politically."

Me: "Don't care, but it will be worse than you think it is."


Someone else: "Politician X is an incompetent jerk."

Me: "He's worse than you think, and don't forget about his corruption too."

And that's the extent of my new conversations, and thoughts on politics.


That's not to say government is any less incompetent, corrupt or awful.  I just attempt to spend more time ignoring it.


On the other hand, I just got a speeding ticket.  Who was my alleged victim?  If there is no victim, then why is it a crime?  If its just potential victims, then why not fine me for committing every crime ever?  Potentially, I could commit any or all of them.

And I also grow plants for deer (food plots, fruit and nut trees, etc.).  For this I need fertilizer.  Some places do not sell fertilizer with nitrogen, thanks to laws forbidding it.  How are plants supposed to grow without nitrogen?

And I wonder about how much more difficult it is to create something than it should be.  What are the relevant laws?  Where would I find the relevant laws?  How am I supposed to be productive if i don't even know where I can look to find all the relevant laws?  Maybe they're making everything illegal so that the government can direct our live however they see fit?

Where have I heard a similar idea before?

I still spend too much time thinking about politics, but I only do so now when its forced upon me.

How much better off would we be if the only laws were: don't harm others, fulfill your contractual obligations?

A commenter at Reason.com said he saw a study that concluded that were it not for government interference, the median yearly American income would be north of 300k.  I can't imagine how such a think could be calculated, but I don't doubt we've lost a tremendous amount of prosperity thanks to the government.

One Liners...

...to defeat political arguments.

Obamacare

Keep your laws off my body.

Abortion

Do you ask pregnant women: "how's the fetus?"

Death Penalty

The government can't get anything else right, why would they be competent at killing people.

Stimulus spending

Is there any amount that would have been enough to fix the economy?

School choice

But...I thought you were "pro-choice"...

Border fences

What makes you think such a fence wouldn't end up being used to keep you in and paying taxes?

Gun control

I dare you to put a "gun free zone" sign in front of your house.

Atheism

There is more support of atheism now than in past decades; and our society has gotten...as a result?

Buy Local

What makes you think increased shipping costs is worse than increased production costs?  See: growing citrus in cold climates


This post was a better idea before I started writing it.  Perhaps I'm not in the mood.  Put better lines in the comments.

Quote of the Day, 7/18/2013

Never look at an ugly thing twice.  Its fatally easy to get accustomed to corrupting influences. 

- C.F.A. Voysey

RIP my favorite fishing rod

My favorite fishing rod was lost to weeds while trolling a shad rap yesterday afternoon.

A Berkley Lightning rod and Abu Garcia Cardinal reel with which I've caught muskies, walleyes, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, pike, brown trout, rainbow trout, yellow perch, bluegills, pumpkinseeds, rock bass and perhaps a few more species of fish.

Not the greatest spinning rod/reel, but the only one that I have sentimental attachment to. 

The reel that preceded the lost one also caught many fish and now rests in a glass topped box which contains such "treasures" as my first pocket knife, my grandpa's pocket knife, my first fishing hat (which I wore to my first day of kindergarten and last day of high school), my first wallet, the tag for my first buck, and a few other things. 

I had planned on preserving that rod and reel in perhaps a shadow box to commemorate all of the fish it has caught.

I'm now sad, it seemed to always feel like a part of my right arm, and went wherever I went fishing.  My biggest walleye (31") probably came on that rod, and the dozen bass that were caught on my beaver lake Rapala (as opposed to the 10 caught on a combined four other rods) recently came on that rod.  And my first stream trout.  And too many smallmouth bass to count.

A sad day.  All other rods are just things.

Not quite, but nearly, the smallest trout caught on my rod:

Stupid weeds!

Mandated Gun Ownership

How would requiring the ownership of a gun be different from requiring the purchase of healthcare?  Its just a tax if you don't buy one, so why not the other?

The small town of Nelson, Georgia, (pop: 1,300) passed an ordinance in April requiring the head of each household to own a firearm (with exceptions for convicted felons, those not capable of owning a gun, and anyone who conscientiously objected. Despite the exceptions, and that the town’s police chief (and only cop) said he had no intention of enforcing the ordinance, the Brady Center for Gun Violence (an anti-gun more than an anti-violence group) is suing the city over what it calls an “unconstitutional” law.

-reason

from the comments:

The GOP should quietly threaten to pass a mandatory gun law if the Democrats don't repeal ObamaCarousel. Sure, deny it publicly, but make it clear that they'll do it as soon as they have the votes.

What part of the constitution grants the government the power to enact such a regulation?

The same part that says that the government can compel you to purchase a product from a third party.

In my book, the people in a state or a municipality can pass their own local constitution which grants their local government powers which do not conflict with the Federal constitution. Any authority the people have not granted to the local government in such way, the local government should not have.

If government can force you to have fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, and low flow toilets and showerheads why can't they force you to own a firearm?

According to the FedGov, the National Militia includes every able-bodied man between specific ages. Requiring that everyone own a firearm supports this definition of "militia" in a very practical way. Too bad towns are having to do the work that the FedGov just isn't willing to do.

The government can't require people to do something unless there's some plausible argument that it serves a legitimate government objective, Perry said. While deterring crime could be considered a legitimate objective, it would be hard for the city to prove the ordinance accomplishes that goal, he said.

Step 1. Fight this lawsuit and ultimately lose because "it's hard for the city to prove the ordinance accomplishes that goal."

Step 2. Sue Chicago and demand they prove that their "common sense gun control" laws accomplish the goal of reducing gun violence.

Step 3. Sue D.C. and demand they prove that their "common sense gun control" laws accomplish the goal of reducing gun violence.

Rinse-repeat.

Just which Constitutional right does this law violate, again?

Note that this has nothing to do with any of purportedly limited grants of power to the feds, so the Commerce Clause and all that are irrelevant. If this is unconstitutional, it can only be because it violates a Constitutional right. So, which one?

In light of the Obamacare decision, which one indeed?  And why not try it?

'tis amazing wht you can find on them thar intranets

Where could I find a horse about this (holds hands apart) big?

*tweezer glint

Blog Stuff & Meet Up

I'm through with commenting at HP.  Too much time wasted.

But another reason is because I've had too many comments moderated into oblivion.  I'm not sure why with any of them, and this last one was one too many.

Move with the breeze

...you don't know anything about fishing.

If you're idea of fishing always includes a bobber...then you don't know anything about fishing.

If your primary rod is a color other than black or grey...then you (most likely) don't know anything about fishing.

If the dominant feature of your reel is a large button...then you don't know anything about fishing.

If you don't own a boat (a canoe counts)...then you don't know anything about fishing.  (Trout fishermen excepted.)

 If your boat says "fish n ski," or similar, on it, then you don't know anything about fishing.

If you don't own more than a half dozen Rapalas...then you don't know anything about fishing.

If you only know how to find fish near weeds...then you know very little about fishing.

If you only know one type of knot...then you don't know anything about fishing.

If your big fish story is about a 20" pike...you don't know anything about fishing.

If you don't know the difference between freshwater and saltwater hooks...then you don't know anything about fishing.

(I do mean this as helpful comments to point out where you should learn more, rather than just criticism.)

Quote of the Day, 7-9-2013

Guess which issue this comment is about.

Exactly. They can never let the issue go away. Neither side can afford to have the issue go away, really. Both the left and the right have a vested interest in keeping the issue alive and highly contentious, especially for fundraising purposes and to aid voter turnout for their side.

Compromise based on common sense is something neither side really wishes to think about.

And the issue is:  Does it matter?

Observations on the Weekend

I've just added compound bow preparation/ adjustment and baitcasting reel repair to my ever expanding list of skills for which I could make up to minimum wage!

I was in northern Wisconsin and happened pass lots of tourists on the bike trails.  I noticed that all the overweight women were alone, and all the average or thin ones had family around.

Why've so many former fishing towns become t-shirt and ice cream selling tourist destinations?

Why would anyone drive for hours to hike/ bike some stupid trails?

What's the point of an RV?  "We're going camping, but we've forgotten to bring something, what was it?  Oh yeah. The house."

The trick in fishing is having all of your equipment work, being where the fish are, and being there at the right time.  The right time is generally two weeks ago while you were at work.

There's an art to holding fish for pictures.  Its hard to explain when the fish holder is to happy to listen.

 

 

 

Doesn't look like 17", does it?

A Thought and A Link

A thought I've wondered about, from a commenter at reason.com (BOR = Bill of Rights):

The argument was that if you didn't have a BOR, the government might some day say we had no rights. But if you did have a BOR, the courts might some day say those are the only rights we have. So there was a lot of debate about the need for a BOR.

IN the end, both sides were proven right. Without a BOR, I have no doubt we would be like the UK and have no rights. But with one, we are stuck with only those rights the courts think the document protects.

A later commenter came up with the right answer to this question:

I thought we were talking about people who act in good faith. No words, or lack or words, will restrain the type of people you cite.

No amount or arrangement of words would prevent those who seek the government's favor and support from acquiring the same.

***

And a link found courtesy of another commenter:

Real Satanists Want Nothing To Do With Abortion Supporters

***

I haven't actually read a reason.com (or Huffington Post) article in a while, but the reason commenters are quite good. 

See another comment:

The problem is that without a God, it is hard to come up with a source for equality and equal rights. Yes, you can make a case for it, but you are left with making a practical case that it is a good thing. But that puts you down on the level of utilitarians.

The argument you want and need to make is "all men are created equal and have equal rights no matter what the good or bad effects". You want that to be a first principle. That way you are not down arguing on a utilitarian level. That way you can tell fascists and progs to go fuck themselves with their dreams of Utopia, because even Utopia cant' justify breaking a first principle.

But without God or a higher authority, why is that a first principle? That is where the argument gets tough because progs and fascists come back and say "but equality is a first principle".

How are we different from a police state?

And what can be done about it?

According to the Charlottesville Daily Progress, shortly after 10 p.m. on April 11, the 20-year-old U.Va. student bought ice cream, cookie dough and a carton of LaCroix sparkling water from the Harris Teeter grocery store at the popular Barracks Road Shopping Center. In the parking lot, a half-dozen men and a woman approached her car, flashing some kind of badges. One jumped on the hood. Another drew a gun. Others started trying to break the windows.

Daly understandably panicked. With her roommate in the passenger seat yelling “Go, go, go!” Daly drove off, hoping to reach the nearest police station. The women dialed 911. Then a vehicle with lights and sirens pulled them over, and the situation clarified: The persons who had swarmed Daly’s vehicle were plainclothes agents of the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. The agents had thought the sparkling water was a 12-pack of beer.

Did the ABC’s enforcers apologize? Not in the slightest. They charged Daly with three felonies: two for assaulting an officer (her vehicle had grazed two agents; neither was hurt) and one for eluding the police. Last week, the commonwealth’s attorney dropped the charges.

The agents’ excessive display of force is outrageously disproportionate to the offense they mistakenly thought they witnessed: an underage purchase of alcohol. But in a sense, Daly got off easy. A couple weeks after her ordeal, a 61-year-old man in Tennessee was killed when the police executed a drug raid on the wrong house. A few weeks later, in another wrong-house raid, police officers killed a dog belonging to an Army veteran. These are not isolated incidents; for more information, visit the interactive map at www.cato.org/raidmap.

-reason

Quote of the Day, 7-3-2013

I sometimes have to wonder if it wouldn't be better to be living in some much more corrupt country where idiotic shit like this gets ignored or bribed away and things just continue to operate in an otherwise sensible manner. Bureaucrats that you can pay to just fuck off have to be better than ones that will subject you to endless paperwork and who knows what threats of imprisonment or fines. I mean, isn't a fine really just a bribe that doesn't do what a bribe should do, which is make them go away?

-Reason.com commenter

How to Catch The World Record Muskie

Many people who fish for muskies spend time thinking about when and where the next world record may be caught.

The first problem with this is we don't know what the biggest muskie ever caught was.  There was an awful lot of lying and cheating in the forties when it came to the biggest muskies ever caught.  Some of those fish were still quite big, and one is still widely recognized as the biggest ever at a little over 69 pounds.  There is much speculation about whether or not that fish is as big as we're told or if Indians speared it or about other problems with it.

The next few biggest fish also have questions about their authenticity.  The 65 pounder caught in the Georgian Bay in Lake Huron in the late eighties has new questions about its genuineness.  And the 61 pounder from the same place in 2000 was not weighed as well as those who care about this record would like.

All this leaves us with, possibly, a 58 pound fish caught in Michigan last year.

I find all of that uninteresting.  (If you find it interesting, you might read A Compendium of Musky Angling History.)

One reason I don't find the subject of the biggest fish interesting is because there are many people attempting to determine the biggest fish by calling everyone liars and cheats.  They may be right, but they're still dicks.

(Another fun subject is the Indian spearing in northern WI.  If I find the pictures of dozens of fish bigger than you'll ever catch that were speared by the indians when the cold blooded fish were too slow to move, then I'll post on it.  They're able to just about kill every fish in a lake, and they've done a fair job of killing off lots of fish.  It'll be another anti-PC post.)

A lot of warm-up, here's the post:

The places where 60+ pound muskies live is likely: the Great lakes, the St. Lawrence River, and there are a handful in several lakes in Northwest Ontario.

(NW Ontario, for those not in the know, is the southwest corner of the province of Ontario.  Northern Ontario seems to be in the middle....)

That's where the biggest fish are.  Then you'll need to consider the size limits on the fish in the various places.

In an attempt to manage the fish population, many have successfully lobbied politicians to put large minimum size limits on muskies.  In many parts of Ontario (which includes NW Ontario and half the great lakes, including the Georgian Bay) the size limit is 54 inches.

In order for a fish to be properly weighed in order to count towards the world record it needs to be killed, and in order to be legally killed it needs to be bigger than the minimum size limit.

This size limit leads us to the interesting situation where the 61 pound fish caught in 2000 was, depending on how it was measured, would have been around 54 inches, and may well have been undersized had it been caught and kept the following year, after the size limit was increased.  Possibly the biggest muskie ever caught was borderline too small to be legally kept!

It seems to me that size limits in excess of 50 inches may just as well be "no kill."

Oh you caught the first legitimate 70 pound muskie ever?  Well its too small to be legally kept. - many muskie activists would like to say

1. laws stink
2. the government is evil
3. people who advocate muskie regulations are no better than the wefare moms demanding stuff from the government

All this leads us to the biggest muskies in the world and the size limits necessary to count towards a really big fish pointing us towards a handful of NW Ontario lakes and the southern half (US side) of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River.

Much to the dismay of muskie casters, the two ways most likely to hook a really big fish are with live bait and trolling.  (Many of those casters would like nothing better than to ban both.)

Once a giant fish is located live bait is the way to go, but the places where those fish are likely to be are places where there are not a lot of fish.  Lifetimes could be spent in search of one of those big fish and you'll not find one at the speed with which a live bait fishermen covers the water.

This leaves us with trolling in the above mentioned places.

However there are yet more laws to contend with.

Most places allow one line in the water per person.  Because of the way ice fishing works, Wisconsin allows three line per person (where trolling is allowed, and there are new one line trolling places available this year, and laws still suck).  Michigan allows one line per person; Ontario allows one, and I don't know about Ohio, New York, or Minnesota.

More lines in the water means more chances at fish, so if my goal was to catch the biggest muskie ever, I'd troll Lake Superior in Wisconsin territories.  Perhaps also the St. Lawrence in New York waters.

Then we're limited to the fall.  Fish eat lots in the fall to bulk up before a slow winter when they lose lots of weight.  They eat some in the spring and summer, but it is in the fall when the fish are the biggest in these colder climates.

We're now narrowed to trolling Wisconsin waters in Lake Superior, and depending on New York trolling laws, the St. Lawrence River in NY.

The way to troll for muskies is almost certainly the way its done on Lake St. Clair.  Possibly with some modifications.

Finally the subject of the post:

If my goal was to catch the biggest muskie ever, I'd by a boat like the Canadian trollers on Lake St. Clair (the American trollers use smaller boats, I think) rig it like they do there, and I'd troll around Lake Superior in Wisconsin waters.  I'd hire a bunch of people to ride around in the boat with me too, so I could get the maximum number of lines in the water.  I'd want to do this from the middle of September through whenever the season ends or the ice becomes too much.  (Boating in lake Superior in November isn't a great idea.  Just ask the Edmund Fitzgerald and many other large ships.)

The Apostle Islands and any other structure would be where I'd start.

So that's what I'd do, if that was my goal (it isn't) and its time of the year didn't interfere with deer hunting (it does).

I wish you good luck if you want to try it.  I'll pass on the idea for the many, many, many days it would require for even the slightest hope of success.  But I'd travel up there to spend a handful of days trying it out.  It wouldn't be the worst way to spend your time.  Let me know how you do.

tldr: fishing laws suck too, deer > muskies

My 1st Blogiversary!

Its been a year since I started this, my very first blog.

Hooray! Strike up the band!  Bring on the symbols, trumpets and drums! Haul out the dancing girls! ...

...or just go back to doing whatever you were doing before, it won't make any difference. :p