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Things I do

I get "whatever Doug does" a lot. I am that computer mystic. To my children, I "fix computers" although I think they are beginning to come around to "he makes web pages."

This morning, I configured a server located either in the United Kingdom or New York (I really don’t know where it physically sits) to no longer send email through a Linux server in Holland but instead to securely send email through a Windows server located somewhere else. I did this without leaving my basement and without physically laying hands on the servers. They are well secured against intrusion by spammers or denial of service attacks. My client is in London. I woke at 3am to be on their time. I invoice them electronically and they pay through Paypal. People in Knoxville will never see me working with my clients and assume I do nothing.

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Adding a definition of marriage to the state constitution is stupid

For those of you about to vote to add the definition of marriage as "a man and a woman" should look at these other marriage situations from culture and history.

As you vote about making changes to your state’s constitution, you should consider the definition of constitution:

constitution – The system of fundamental laws and principles that prescribes the nature, functions, and limits of a government or another institution.

Having considered the definition, ask yourself does defining marriage within the constitution have anything whatsoever to do with the "nature, function or limits" of our government? Of course not! It has to do with trying to force your moral beliefs on others. Government has no business trying to legislate morals! As you place your vote, recognize that your decisions today determine the future of our country. Are you making decisions that keep this country a free, democratic society or are you making decisions that move us toward an autocratic, Orwellian society?

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Anyone familiar with Knox County building codes?

Does anyone know the minimum distances a wood stove needs to sit from walls? The stove is already in place so the backside with the pipe into the wall does not concern me. I need to know how close a wall can be to the side of the stove.

The city seems to imply that I should use the manufacturer specification so this may be my answer.

Question
Just purchased a used fischer woodstove, approximately 32″ long x 22″ wide x 37″ high, with double doors. No tags attached to indicated placement distance from wall. Any idea? What is the best material to put behind the stove to protect the wall? Stove has 8″ hole in back of stove for pipe. Is it okay to reduce the pipe to 6″? Should we install the fire proof rope on the inside of the doors?
Answer
Answers to all these questions are located in the database at http://chi.hearth.com/search.html, but here’s a quickie.

  1. Do not reduce from 8 to 6
  2. 36″ clearances to combustibles with no protection
  3. That stove did not use a gasket on the door, however, you can place one there if you like. You should use a flat gasket for this (available at stove stores)
  4. Wall protection – sheet metal, cement board, brick, stone, etc. with proper air spaces.
Check the Q and A and the document http://hearth.com/what/installstove.html for more.

[Source]

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Digital Omens

Bad sign.

U.S. digital entertainment company Gracenote on Thursday said it obtained licenses to distribute lyrics as music publishers mulled legal action against Web sites that provide them without authorization [www.lyrics.com and www.azlyrics.com]. [Source]

Where does it end? One day will I be sued because I linked to pcmag.com without asking and paying a royalty to create the link? I know that is not the same thing as posting all the lyrics to a song but what will be the last dominoe to fall?

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Don’t put Super Glue in your mouth!

So, I was holding the object being glued in one hand and the tube of Super Glue in the other hand when suddenly I needed that other hand so I just held the capped tube of glue in my mouth. What I forgot was, that this being a brand new tube of glue, I had moments earlier used the pointy part of the cap to break the seal on the glue. Doh! Guess I’m going to be quiet this afternoon.