Bluejay feathers contain no blue pigment, from what I understand. The blue color comes from structures that block the reflection of other wavelengths. That's why when you look at them from behind they're not blue.

Sounds like the same principle for the ultra-black.

I'll be writing more checks this year than last for utilities, as different organizations start passing along the credit card service fees.

Those credit card companies have quite a nice scam going, here in the US. I gather it's better in other places, which is hardly surprising.

All we need then is AI bots to read all the garbage that the AI users churn out. Hey, let's fire up some more nuclear plants to fuel this worthwhile endeavor!

XQuery is simpler and more straightforward, but more powerful than SQL.

In MarkLogic, XQuery also works well with JSON. That plus the CTS (Core Text Search) library give you everything you need with surprising elegance and speed, if you understand how the indexes work.

I hope I never have to use SQL again. Complicated, confusing, and weak. How many hours do you have to spend poring over those silly syntax flowcharts?

No, I do not work for MarkLogic, but I think it's a great product.

How the true greed of corporations like HP rears its ugly head... they aren't content to sell you something that you actually own. They want to keep their hooks in it. All for them, nothing for you.

Creeps.

I'm happy to realize that I've been spared the effects of brain damage that results from being in a position of power.

"Firms must also appoint officers and contact people -- who live in India" Because India is completely opposed to outsourcing?

It would be poetic justice if white trash from the Southern US turned out to be cheaper to hire than Indian censors, so all the work was outsourced to them.

Everything was working fine until Microsoft forced update reboots on all the Windows 10 machines.

LOL

The story I heard was that the 456 tape which was popular for recording was never intended to be an archive tape, but it had better sound quality which is why everyone used it.

I had a project I recorded in 1988, then back in the 2000's had it transferred to CD. Melted the plastic reel - I think the temperature he used was higher, maybe 180F.

I've got a few projects I still need to do this with.....

Even more fun is when DAT tape stretches and becomes unreadable. I'm not sure there's anything you can do about it!

What the Buddha said about impermanence!

As a friend used to say, "High technology is low magick."

The other obnoxious one is making mouse targets so small you have to use a microscope to find them. Really, why is this necessary? I didn't click 1 pixel away from the icon because I DIDN'T want to click on the icon.

Then there's the nifty trick of replacing the button I wanted to click on with something else (usually an ad) right before I click on it. Obnoxious and confusing.

Actually, the systems YOU DESIGNED are obsolete because you didn't care about the future.

I use one regularly, and it's good for about 80 percent of what I want to do - watching the news and videos, reading email, editing small documents. Good for travel - lightweight and lets you access websites and maps, great battery life.

The best part is, it's so terrible, nobody wants to steal it!

Currently:
Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

2018:
Courrier Sud - Antoine de Saint Exupéry
Vol de Nuit - Antoine de Saint Exupéry
Maigret - Georges Simenon
Vingt mille lieues sous les mers - Jules Verne