This is a script of the interaction I had with my PC the last time I tried to change my Windows password:WINDOWS:Please enter your new password.USER:CabbageWINDOWS:Sorry, the password must be more than 8 characters.USER:Boiled cabbageWINDOWS:Sorry, the password must contain 1 numerical character.USER:1 boiled cabbageWINDOWS:Sorry, the password cannot have blank spacesUSER:50damnboiledcabbagesWINDOWS:Sorry, the password must contain at least one upper case characterUSER:50DAMNboiledcabbagesWINDOWS:Sorry the password cannot use more than one upper case character consecutively.USER:50damnBoiledCabbagesShovedUpYourAssIfYouDon'tGiveMeAccessNow !WINDOWS:Sorry, the password cannot contain punctuation.USER:ReallyPissedOff50DamnBoiledCabbagesShovedUpYourAssIfYouDontGiveMeAccessNowWINDOWS:Sorry, that password is already in use.
Sunday, July 28, 2019
Why People NEVER Change Their Password
One of my friends sent me this humorous post. It's spot on.
Wednesday, July 3, 2019
Email Settings for Amcrest IP Surveillance Cameras
I have several Amcrest IP cameras that I use for surveillance of my homes. They've been pretty dependable, and were the first good IP cameras that came out when I first started using them (they were first named Foscam cameras, and I started using them over 10 years ago before all the newer IP/surveillance cameras came out). I have a 10-year old or older Foscam in one storage facility that sends me email alerts and video over a Freedompop hotspot (cell data) connection, which has been pretty nice. If you don't know what Freedompop is, don't worry -- they just got sold to tello or some other cell phone MVNO.
The cameras have been pretty reliable, and one great thing is that I can use them without knowing all the details of my router's IP address. I no longer have to set port forwarding on my router. In one remote area where I have a garage, I have a TP-Link WISP router that takes a Comcast wifi hotspot signal (I have a Comcast account at home) and creates its own wifi network in the garage. I have an Amcrest camera set up there and its worked well. I can watch the network feed live if I want to through the amcrestview.com portal, and it's set up to detect motion and send me email alerts. It has all kinds of features but the technical support is not good at all, nor are the web and phone app interfaces.
About a month ago, my Amcrest cameras stopped sending email alerts. I spent a couple of hours troubleshooting them and trying to find a solution. The Amcrest forums suck, they seem old and don't have information. So here's a solution that I found today (by chatting with an Amcrest salesman on their website). I'm posting the solutions here on my blog for other Amcrest users.
Why doesn't Amcrest have a web page or forum that describes email settings that WORK?!
Gmail: Sending emails using a Gmail account no longer seems to work, as of about June 1, 2019.
GMX: I've never been able to get my gmx email account to work.
AOL: I used to be able to use an AOL account for Amcrest email alerts, but that stopped about four years ago. AOL also stopped allowing folks to forward emails from their account, which made me stop using my AOL account (for another reason, which I can't remember).
Comcast: Sending emails using a Comcast account does work. You have to have a Comcast account. Use SSL and port 465.
Here's what the Amcrest chat person wrote. His instructions worked but he left out one important goddamn item.
"please create a Yahoo account and go to the Account Info > Account Security > Generate Password
"Please use the same app password (make sure you use the spaces after each 4 characters) that is generated in your email settings and check if you are still facing this issue. [I did not need to do this and just used my usual Yahoo email password]
SMTP: smtp.mail.yahoo.com
Authentication: TLS
Port: 587
Username: ********@yahoo.com
Password: (The App password)
Sender: ********@yahoo.com
Recipient: ********@gmail.com"
Well, the above did not work for me at first. The Amcrest rep left out this important item:
Go to Yahoo email security settings and
Allow apps that use less secure sign in in your new yahoo account.
go to the Account Info > Account Security > Allow apps that use less secure sign in
The cameras have been pretty reliable, and one great thing is that I can use them without knowing all the details of my router's IP address. I no longer have to set port forwarding on my router. In one remote area where I have a garage, I have a TP-Link WISP router that takes a Comcast wifi hotspot signal (I have a Comcast account at home) and creates its own wifi network in the garage. I have an Amcrest camera set up there and its worked well. I can watch the network feed live if I want to through the amcrestview.com portal, and it's set up to detect motion and send me email alerts. It has all kinds of features but the technical support is not good at all, nor are the web and phone app interfaces.
About a month ago, my Amcrest cameras stopped sending email alerts. I spent a couple of hours troubleshooting them and trying to find a solution. The Amcrest forums suck, they seem old and don't have information. So here's a solution that I found today (by chatting with an Amcrest salesman on their website). I'm posting the solutions here on my blog for other Amcrest users.
Why doesn't Amcrest have a web page or forum that describes email settings that WORK?!
Gmail: Sending emails using a Gmail account no longer seems to work, as of about June 1, 2019.
GMX: I've never been able to get my gmx email account to work.
AOL: I used to be able to use an AOL account for Amcrest email alerts, but that stopped about four years ago. AOL also stopped allowing folks to forward emails from their account, which made me stop using my AOL account (for another reason, which I can't remember).
Comcast: Sending emails using a Comcast account does work. You have to have a Comcast account. Use SSL and port 465.
"please create a Yahoo account and go to the Account Info > Account Security > Generate Password
"Please use the same app password (make sure you use the spaces after each 4 characters) that is generated in your email settings and check if you are still facing this issue. [I did not need to do this and just used my usual Yahoo email password]
SMTP: smtp.mail.yahoo.com
Authentication: TLS
Port: 587
Username: ********@yahoo.com
Password: (The App password)
Sender: ********@yahoo.com
Recipient: ********@gmail.com"
Well, the above did not work for me at first. The Amcrest rep left out this important item:
Go to Yahoo email security settings and
Allow apps that use less secure sign in in your new yahoo account.
go to the Account Info > Account Security > Allow apps that use less secure sign in
Check the slider in the box to allow this.
Yahoo states: Some non-Yahoo apps and devices use less secure sign-in technology, which could leave your account vulnerable. You can turn off access (which we recommend) or choose to use them despite the risks.
This finally worked!
Sunday, June 2, 2019
Great Stuff: Sea Foam, Peristaltic (Dosing) Pumps, Diaphragm Pumps
I have some tool-related items to relate to my readers.
1. Sea Foam: this stuff really works. I have an old Craftsman lawn mower here. In storage for 9 years. I did all the right things when storing -- put in Stabil fuel stabilizer, ran the motor dry, etc. I took it out last year to try to run it, no can do. There's almost nothing more frustrating than yanking and yanking that damn starter cord on lawnmowers, outboard engines, etc; and the engines not starting.
I then heard about Sea Foam. I put this stuff in the lawn mower carburetor, along with fresh premium gas (no ethanol, no can find in CA); and I am not kidding, this lawn mower started up on the first pull. I let the engine go off and tried yanking the starter cord again, it would not start until I sprayed Sea Foam in there. I then ran it for ten minutes and was able to start it without Sea Foam, with gas soaking the air filter, and about three starts with Sea Foam.
There's two kinds of Sea Foam:
Sea Foam SF-16 Motor Treatment: this goes in gas and cleans engines; stabilizes stored fuel for up to two years
Sea Foam SS14 Cleaner and Lube - spray this in carburetors, helps engines start up
2. When you are trying to pour gas into a mower or elsewhere, don't you ALWAYS spill the gas everywhere? I bought a 1-gallon can of WD-40 recently and tried to transfer that stuff from the old-style metal can into smaller spray bottles. It was impossible. That stuff spilled everywhere; it was an incredible waste. I tried everything: funnels, something to screw onto the spout, etc. It was maddening. The can was one of those metal things that never pour well and were designed in the 1950s.
I did some research, consulted my friend Dr. Dale Stokes, and bought a peristaltic (dosing) pump from Amazon for about $9. It took a bit of time to find the right wires and connectors to connect this to a 12-volt battery (a car battery will be fine; I used a 6-pack of AA NiMh batteries in a holder; and later a 12V battery from an old burglar alarm) and the proper sized tubing. It works great and results in little waste. I used the dosing pump today to get the old gas out of the lawnmower and putting in fresh gas from my gas can. No more mess.
Peristaltic (dosing) pumps are designed to take fluids out and put them in a container in small, controlled doses. You can take the tubing right out of the pump and replace it; the fluids don't go into the pump. Therefore you can use different tubing for different fluids with no contamination. Because the fluid stays in the tubing, I believe this pump will work fine with low-viscosity fluids like WD-40 and gasoline. However, please do your research before using this with any flammable liquids, and ensure that you have all proper safety procedures in place. WARNING: do your research before using this with any flammable liquids, and ensure that you have all proper safety procedures in place.
I bought a Gikfun peristaltic pump at Amazon. It accepts vinyl tubing that is 1/8" inner diameter (ID). It looks like it will work with standard aquarium tubing which is 1/4" ID, but it did not work for me!
3. In a similar vein, I bought a diaphragm pump to pump out the remaining water at the bottom of a hot tub when draining the tub. This diaphragm pump was under $10 at Amazon, required some vinyl tubing of the right size, and a 12V power source. I use the diaphragm pump to get rid of the very last amount of water remaining in my hot tub when I am draining the tub. With a diaphragm pump, the fluid being pumped actually enters the pump, so different fluids can mix if you use the same pump, even if you change out the vinyl tubing. Because the fluid goes into the pump seals and valves, do not use this pump with low-viscosity or flammable fluids like WD-40 and gasoline. This pump states that it is to be used only with water.
I bought a Gikfun diaphragm pump from Amazon. 5/16" or 1/4" inner diameter (ID) vinyl tubing will fit this pump just fine. I mistakenly bought 3/16" IUD tubing and made it fit by heating it up in a cup of hot water. Microwaved hot water in a pyrex measuring cup has done all kinds of good things for me recently. I've used it to get a garden hose pliable enough to fit a hose mender adapter; and to get the top off of a store-bought pepper bottle so I could re-use the bottle and pepper grinder on the top.
1. Sea Foam: this stuff really works. I have an old Craftsman lawn mower here. In storage for 9 years. I did all the right things when storing -- put in Stabil fuel stabilizer, ran the motor dry, etc. I took it out last year to try to run it, no can do. There's almost nothing more frustrating than yanking and yanking that damn starter cord on lawnmowers, outboard engines, etc; and the engines not starting.
I then heard about Sea Foam. I put this stuff in the lawn mower carburetor, along with fresh premium gas (no ethanol, no can find in CA); and I am not kidding, this lawn mower started up on the first pull. I let the engine go off and tried yanking the starter cord again, it would not start until I sprayed Sea Foam in there. I then ran it for ten minutes and was able to start it without Sea Foam, with gas soaking the air filter, and about three starts with Sea Foam.
There's two kinds of Sea Foam:
Sea Foam SF-16 Motor Treatment: this goes in gas and cleans engines; stabilizes stored fuel for up to two years
Sea Foam SS14 Cleaner and Lube - spray this in carburetors, helps engines start up
2. When you are trying to pour gas into a mower or elsewhere, don't you ALWAYS spill the gas everywhere? I bought a 1-gallon can of WD-40 recently and tried to transfer that stuff from the old-style metal can into smaller spray bottles. It was impossible. That stuff spilled everywhere; it was an incredible waste. I tried everything: funnels, something to screw onto the spout, etc. It was maddening. The can was one of those metal things that never pour well and were designed in the 1950s.
I did some research, consulted my friend Dr. Dale Stokes, and bought a peristaltic (dosing) pump from Amazon for about $9. It took a bit of time to find the right wires and connectors to connect this to a 12-volt battery (a car battery will be fine; I used a 6-pack of AA NiMh batteries in a holder; and later a 12V battery from an old burglar alarm) and the proper sized tubing. It works great and results in little waste. I used the dosing pump today to get the old gas out of the lawnmower and putting in fresh gas from my gas can. No more mess.
Peristaltic (dosing) pumps are designed to take fluids out and put them in a container in small, controlled doses. You can take the tubing right out of the pump and replace it; the fluids don't go into the pump. Therefore you can use different tubing for different fluids with no contamination. Because the fluid stays in the tubing, I believe this pump will work fine with low-viscosity fluids like WD-40 and gasoline. However, please do your research before using this with any flammable liquids, and ensure that you have all proper safety procedures in place. WARNING: do your research before using this with any flammable liquids, and ensure that you have all proper safety procedures in place.
I bought a Gikfun peristaltic pump at Amazon. It accepts vinyl tubing that is 1/8" inner diameter (ID). It looks like it will work with standard aquarium tubing which is 1/4" ID, but it did not work for me!
3. In a similar vein, I bought a diaphragm pump to pump out the remaining water at the bottom of a hot tub when draining the tub. This diaphragm pump was under $10 at Amazon, required some vinyl tubing of the right size, and a 12V power source. I use the diaphragm pump to get rid of the very last amount of water remaining in my hot tub when I am draining the tub. With a diaphragm pump, the fluid being pumped actually enters the pump, so different fluids can mix if you use the same pump, even if you change out the vinyl tubing. Because the fluid goes into the pump seals and valves, do not use this pump with low-viscosity or flammable fluids like WD-40 and gasoline. This pump states that it is to be used only with water.
I bought a Gikfun diaphragm pump from Amazon. 5/16" or 1/4" inner diameter (ID) vinyl tubing will fit this pump just fine. I mistakenly bought 3/16" IUD tubing and made it fit by heating it up in a cup of hot water. Microwaved hot water in a pyrex measuring cup has done all kinds of good things for me recently. I've used it to get a garden hose pliable enough to fit a hose mender adapter; and to get the top off of a store-bought pepper bottle so I could re-use the bottle and pepper grinder on the top.
Thursday, May 23, 2019
Why I Hate Using AirBNB Part 2
I've stayed at a lovely place on the Rogue River about ten times now.
I just wish AirBNB would stop harassing me to leave reviews. It's ridiculous that I cannot find any way to make AirBNB's constant, harassing demands that I leave a review stop, especially since I am a repeat visitor.
One review question that does not make sense: was the stay as expected, better than expected, or much better than expected? Well, I've been there several times now, so really, the stays have all been as expected except for the first time. But if I answer "as expected" that's middle-of-the-road. So this Q&A does not make sense.
"We won't share your responses until after your host writes a review too"-- this is manipulative psychology designed to coerce people to write a review. If you don't write a review, AirBNB continues to spam you with requests (well, it's a demand if they don't give up) to write a review. Terrible!
"Was anything extra special?" For f's sake, I gave a star rating and now I am being coerced to select something that was "extra special." I am a man. Give me a shower and a bed with a firm pillow, and that will be fine. As long as the room is not too hot. If the AirBNB host lets me let my dog into the room (don't worry, I bring sheets and towels in the room for the dog to lie on), that's pretty great -- but that's not a frigging choice in the review! The entire review thing seems designed is for girls and girlie men. Real men these days are being hammered by society, absolutely hammered from all sides. Thank god I am not a white male. Then I'd have to deal with white guilt too.
I hate surveys and having no way to stop being harassed by a company for reviews.
Why I Hate Using AirBNB
I have used AirBNB, but I hate the way AirBNB harasses you to leave a review, time after time -- even if you stay with the same host. AirBNB even uses BS psychology to try to get you to leave a review: You can read your host's feedback once you write a review of your own." That's so childishly manipulative. These social media and "new tech" companies are always trying to exploit their customers.
Here's what I wrote a host who uses AirBNB. I've stayed at his place about 10 times now since he allows dogs, is on my way to my summer home in Olympia, and has a great place right on the Rogue River.
Have you seen this stuff that AirBNB sends its customers? Once I stay at your place, I keep getting these emails harassing me to review my stay. It's childish!
"You can read Kirk’s feedback once you write a review of your own" -- what?!
The problem is that AirBNB keeps harassing me. I despise this sort of thing.
I detest AirBNB and other social sites like Facebook. I just hate it when
I get constantly harassed for reviews and other stuff. When you buy
something, why the F do businesses need to send you surveys? They
should know if they've done a good job or not; they should not need me
to tell them.
AirBNB forces us to leave reviews. Sure, it's so folks know you are a
good host. But as a customer, I really, really despise being constantly
harassed to leave reviews, and I really despise the way AirBNB does it
-- by using psychology to try to make me comply.
I also dislike AirBNB because they profit more than you do, as a host,
if I book a room anywhere and then cancel. I am not sure if you know
this, but if I cancel our July dates at your place, you have a policy
that you probably chose, where I can cancel now and you get no
cancellation fee. But AirBNB gets their fee regardless! I had 48 hours
after booking several months ago to cancel, but after that, months ago,
if I cancelled, AirBNB would keep their fee. That's utter BS.
I guess I should be grateful that I discovered you and your place
through AirBNB. I am. But their website sucks. I will try to filter
results by "pet-friendly only' but then AirBNB gives me all kinds of
places that don't allow pets! I have to spend hours perusing the
choices to see if, indeed, pets are allowed. There are complaints about
this on forums dating back years ago, but AirBNB has never fixed this.
This is how AirBNB continues to hassle me until I leave a blasted review!
I will leave a f****! review so AirBNB stops harassing me. I went on their site yesterday to turn off all these kinds of notifications, but no joy.
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Airbnb <automated@airbnb.com>
Date: Thu, May 23, 2019 at 3:47 AM
Subject: Reminder to write a review for Kirk
From: Airbnb <automated@airbnb.com>
Date: Thu, May 23, 2019 at 3:47 AM
Subject: Reminder to write a review for Kirk
Reminder to write a review for Kirk
********
From: Airbnb<automated@airbnb.com>
Date: Tue, May 21, 2019 at 7:49 PM Subject: Kirk wrote you a review 
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