2008-06-30

Password Hashes

Filed under: Uncategorized — Tags: — D. Moonfire @ 18:23

As a continuation of trying to figure out good-quality passwords that don’t require me to come up with a huge password file, I have come up with a workable solution that this site says is a good password (over 90%, most in the 98%). Yeah, it slows me down a lot when I’m remembering them, but the important part is that I can recover the password with nothing but a piece of paper and a pen.

No plan survives contact with the enemy.

One of my banking sites (I have 9 including loans) will not let you use special characters (!@#$%^&*()-=, etc) in passwords. It allows numbers and letters, nothing else. I was stunned by this, mainly because you would think a banking site (and a major one at that) would actually let you create good passwords. I mean, you have to pick a password between 7 and 32 characters, but you cannot use a bloody “&” or “_”.

Back to the drawing board.

I hate…

Filed under: Family, Writing — Tags: — D. Moonfire @ 16:30

I hate that I can’t do everything. Oh, the horrors. Yeah, I know. :P But, I like to be able to do things. I know the basics of building a house and I could probably get reasonable at it given a few chances. Same thing with publishing. I know how to edit, typeset, create covers and do illustrations. I can write (fairly well, I hope) and pretty much do everything from the first word to holding it in my hand. I haven’t figured out how to get it into a bookshelf yet, but that is just a matter of time and networking, I think, and maybe a few more tasks that are tedious, frustrating, but otherwise doable.

(more…)

2008-06-26

3 Things Meme!

Filed under: Uncategorized — Tags: — D. Moonfire @ 21:08

Meme brought to you by Allison Fraclose.

  • Post 3 things you’ve done in your lifetime that you don’t think anybody else on your friends list has done.
  • See if anybody else responds with “I’ve done that.” If they have, you need to add another!(2.b., 2.c., etc…)
  • Have your friends cut & paste this into their journal to see what unique things they’ve done in their life.
  1. Climbed a mountain without gear.
  2. Having a stranger exclaim that you were famous for your fan-fiction.
  3. Had 3 publishers go out of business within 12 months of them publishing me.

Running Bomb votes are in! (and a snippet from Scions)

Filed under: Games, Writing — Tags: , , — D. Moonfire @ 20:37

Well, voting closed on the TIG contest. Hopefully, the masses of my readership downloaded the game, played it, and decided it was the best game of the entire contest.

*cough*

But, surprisingly, it actually got three votes. And none of them were mine, since I won’t vote on my own stuff. So, that means 3 major features update rounds and polishing before I sit back from it and see if it should be continued. After the writing, of course. Flight of the Scions must be written. I need to get the damn story out of my head and see if these new ideas take off.

(more…)

Incapable

Filed under: Family — D. Moonfire @ 14:35

I’m tired of people telling me I can’t comprehend something because I didn’t experience it. Apparently, this was the day to tell me all this since it happened three times in less than 12 hours.

The first was in the middle of a discussion on circumcision. Fair enough, its one of those topics most people don’t end up talking about and I made my opinion up on that a long time ago. Fluffy and I have discussed it and we came up with a decision. But, when someone manages to get in a “you can’t understand a covenant to God” for that discussion, it really gets annoying. Yes, I can. I can because, while I’m associated with no church, I am pretty damn religious when it comes to divine forces. But, apparently, I can’t understand a covenant to a Christan god, simply because I’m not Christan.

(more…)

2008-06-25

Winding Up

Filed under: Family, Writing — Tags: , — D. Moonfire @ 16:00

After realizing it wasn’t a matter of days to get back to my apartment, I decided that I need to write Flight of the Scions no matter what. So, i started my normal process for getting into the actual process of writing novels. That is to say, writing a series of short stories to “remember” how to write again and getting the creative flow working. And then trying to figure out how to write, my desk is uncomfortable and my wrists are starting to hurt. The laptop is good for many things, but I don’t like writing on it that much. Plus, no music. I ran out of space on the little device, so I pull off 20 GB of music for more room. Which means, I’m writing in the horrid silence of a house that isn’t mine.

An intellectual is a person who has discovered something more interesting than sex. – Aldous Huxley

Some months ago, someone asked about test readers for novels. I knew I couldn’t do it then, but you know what? I’m kind of wishing I actually started it then so I would have a support structure of writers when doing this. Kind of frustrating actually, since asking friends and family to read something really doesn’t help. I mean, I love them and all, but they are all really crappy at giving feedback, mainly because my relationship colors their responses. I need someone who feeds off pain and anguish of writers but actually does it for something more than just sheer hatred of their fellow man.

Its scary starting to write again. Always hoping this will be the magical time that it finally clicks and just as terrified that I’m just spewing words out on a page. Time will tell, I guess.

2008-06-24

300 million for a battery

Filed under: Technology — D. Moonfire @ 15:00

I like this idea. I like the idea of someone trying to basically start up another prize to help humanity. I also think that we need a hell of a lot more windmills, solar panel farms, and alternative energies. I also want someone to replace the engine of my car with one of those electric motors with the gas-powered generator for backup. The problem is… I can’t find any of that. I know the science behind most of those, I used to steal the Healthy Living book from my school library for weeks at a time, dreaming of a world where I could live with the least amount of impact on stuff. It was the same type of dreams when I would look through the Bass Fishing catalog up at the cabin most of my childhood. That catalog, ten years old, was probably more heavily read than my dad’s stash of Penthouse. And I’m including the time between 5 and 17 on that.

When I read about hybrid engines the first time, I knew what I wanted. I even looked it up and saw the whys of my decision and what needed to be done. I stared lustfully at hybrids and wailed that the technology I thought was best suited for me (plug-in electric with diesel generator) never happened. Every time I’d find out about a new hybrid, I’d check it out and was just disappointed by the complete and utter lack of progress.

And that was years ago.

When I bought a new car earlier this year, I looked at the hybrids. They sucked for anything besides a modest improvement on mileage. Seat heaters (a Fluffy-required feature), nope. Fit my size, not really. It was like the only hybrid we could find was 10% more for 30% less features and options that we have gotten used to.

And I keep waiting for someone to come up with my dream car.

And someone keeps not doing it.

I know, I could figure it out. I’d have to teach myself engineering, frames, and engines. Well, my brother probably could do the frame for me, but I’d have to pay him. I know that I have the intelligence to replace my engine with what I want, to make it work. Yeah, it would be expensive, but I know I can. The problem is, I didn’t go that route in life. Its one of those closing doors of my chosen path. I’m already a pretty good programmer and writer. But, to add mechanical to that when I’m already trying to be an artist and a musician (at least game music), is just pushing it. I ended up specializing in my life, but there are things that I wish I could do. I could get my dreams of the perfect car, but I would have to give up writing for a while. I can’t do both.

So, $300M for a car battery is the only thing I can hope for. I want someone to come up with a perfect car for me. It isn’t really the money part of things, but obviously I don’t have $300M to come up with it on my own. To do that, I would have to get venture capital and do it via a business, which means I would have to teach myself that business also. Instead, I have to wait for “market forces” to align with what I want. Or at least do the right thing when they had a chance, instead of scrambling because we got sloppy with our greed (I’m including myself).

Either that or do it myself.

2008-06-23

Contingency Plans

Filed under: Family — Tags: , — D. Moonfire @ 14:29

Well, this is my third calendar week out of my apartment. I had a nice compliment from one of my co-workers that said I “wasn’t complaining too much” which is good, since I thought I was being bitchy when I really didn’t have that much of a case. I know people who were hit far worse than me, including a coworker who lost everything from the first floor down.

According to the rumors running around, they are saying up to two months before I will be able to return to my apartment. Looking at the various power companies, it looks like its going to be another week before they even have an idea of how long it will take; they are still looking at the damage right now much less do anything but minor repairs. Rumors say that people are basically dumping their contract with the building and leaving, simply because they won’t be getting back any time soon. I think they’ll make an announcement by Friday, at least, with an estimated schedule.

Looks like I’m going to switch some of my plans around at this point. Staying at my in-laws, I haven’t really settled since I’m waiting to go back. With this… I don’t know what to do. I’m not going to FEMA or anything, simply because I’m not seriously impacted by this, just uncomfortable.

In other news, went home to Illinois for the weekend. A lovely weekend of drywall sanding, taping, and moving. It doesn’t feel like home there anymore. Everything is packed up, colors are wrong, and it smells differently.

Basically, I still feel adrift. I need to stop drifting and settle down again, which will make it that much harder when it does go back to “normal”. FiL said he’s love it if I actually moved into their place properly, but I don’t know if I’m ready for that point yet. Its scary and I don’t want to be a burden. Then again, I really don’t have a choice, do I?

Tomorrow, I’ll be filing a change of address with the post office, at least to get my mail.

Kung Fu Panda is very good though. I am getting that movie the second it shows up on DVD and I would seriously go to see it at least 3 times in the theater. Even with the assholes talking on their phones and texting with full brightness in front of me.

2008-06-20

Grades

Filed under: Education, Family — D. Moonfire @ 15:48

Well, checking out my final grades for the class, it looks like I managed to pull down a B in the class from hell (hand calculated, not reported). I got 7 points knocked off from the last week, most likely because I didn’t respond to anything past Wednesday night (when I abandoned my apartment and computer because of flooding), but that is only 0.7% of my grade which isn’t enough to push me into the A range even if I explained the flooding problem.

I’m unhappy with the grade, being somewhat of a perfectionist, but I don’t think this is really worth the battle. I filed my complaints about the teacher in the post-class survey and I think that is enough. No one will win if I keep hammering it and it wasn’t my best class anyways; most of it didn’t apply to my life up to this point and I seem to cruise in classes if I’ve already experienced it in “real life”. So, a B is good enough for me and I’m glad that my first half of the class (99% for the first half of the class) managed to help me.

Means I’ll probably not graduate with a “summa cum laude” but… oh well. I still have 6 more of these classes and I’ll get A’s in most of them (I hope). I’ll just avoid the teacher in general and just put it behind me.

I feel like…

Filed under: Family — Tags: — D. Moonfire @ 15:04

Driving down the street of the flood damaged city, I had no idea what to expect. Every time I tried to picture what my apartment could look like, I just drew a blank. I didn’t even have words. Would there be drywall peeling off the walls like when the basement flooded when I was a kid? Or would it be pristine clean, a thin shell of normalcy protecting teaming masses of mutated mold waiting for me to blink at the right moment. Would I even be allowed into the building? Would my apartment be trashed, or looted, or just infected with a fridge that didn’t have power for five days now. I suspect the tub of butter is probably spoiled and I have cheese in my fat free milk container.

I feel like… I’m nervous.

(more…)

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