ShowMeBlog

Playing with Ubuntu 8.04 64 bit

  I been playing with Ubunti 8.04 today.  I got video to work.  I can now stream video using Linux.  The video sort of sucks because I do not have access to controls to adjust the camera settings.
  If I can get video to work well with Linux I will use Windows very little.  I do have some programs that I have paid for that are excellent and are Windows programs.

  I have had some problems with 64 bit Linux in the past.  It seems to be working great right now for me.

  I, of course, love the idea that I am using 64 bit software.  The computer does seem to work faster.
 
  I am using Mozilla Firefox 3 Beta 5.  To post this to HNB I am using ScribeFire.

 

Shortbus (2006) rated R

  I just watched ¨Shortbus¨ (2006) and it was interesting.  It is rated R and it deserves an R rating for sure. 
¨Numerous New York City-dwellers come to the exclusive club Shortbus to work out problems in their sexual relationships. Rob and Sophia are a happily married couple, except for the fact that she has never experienced sexual climax. This irony follows her to work, because she is a couples counselor who frequently has to deal with the sexual issues other couples have. Two of her patients are Jamie and James, a gay couple who have been monogamous for five years and counting. James wants to bring other men in to the relationship, and his own history with depression may hint at an ulterior motive. Ceth (Pronounced like Seth) may be the perfect addition to their family, but Caleb, a voyeur from across the street, may have his own ideas about that. Sophia visits Severin, a dominatrix with secrets of her own to reveal¨  IMDB

 

This film is filled with sex from start to the end.  You will know that because in the first five minutes you see a gay couple having sex and a hetro having sex.  When I say see I mean SEE.  You see everything in full close up living color.

   During that time you see a guy masterbating himself and sucking himself off.

   Believe me this is not a family film.  Not even if you want to do some sex education.

    The movie does have a story.  It is not porn.  It was not my type of movie.
One more problem, for me, was the audio.  I have hearing loss and many times to understand what is being said I have to captions on and I could get them in Spanish or French but not in English.  Of course the film was made in English.

   I have a Netflix membership and that is where I got this film.

   If you want to try Netflix free for one month log into:
   www.netflix.com/tellafriend and enter one of these codes:
   M38631880945 or M35639880905  or  M32630880935  or M35633840965
If the numbers are taken then look around the site I am sure they will let you sign up for a free month.  If you use one of the numbers I get a free movie.
 

4015 Visitors to Howardś Notebook Today

  Today is not over and we have over 2900 visitors to Howardś Notebook.  This is going to be a big day for HNB.  The bad news is that most of them are here to see photos of Britney Spears.
  They will stay just long enough to look at her and they will be long gone from HNB.  I wish I could get them to vote for HNB or donate a dollar or do something but no.  Well I can say we had a 3000 plus day.

  I do have some good news.  This is going to shock you.  Our landlord contacted us and he is lowering the rent payment from $1300.00 a month to $1200.00 each month.  That means that I will be paying $50.00 less each month.  I will be paying $600.00 a month. 
  We have a lease and it has six more months to run and I have never heard of a landlord lowering the rent.  He is a hell of a nice and honest man.

  No tax refunds today for us.  Russell, Ken and I did not get any refunds.
  Jimmy make it safe and sound to CA last night and his wife picked him up at the bus station.

  Update:  We had 4015 visitors to HNB today!
 

A Webcam working with Linux

  I got a webcam working with Linux.  In fact, I got it working with the 64 bit of Ubuntu 8.04.  Today I am trying it out.  The color sucks and I can find no way to adjust the color or any of the camera adjustments.
  I got live streaming video right now and I am using Stickam. 
  I mike on the camera does not work and I will look later for a mike to hook up.

  I could not get the Logitech Quickcam Pro 9000 to work but Ubuntu does find the Logitech Quickcam 4000 camera.

  Later today I will try and see if it works on the 32 bit version of Ubuntu.
  I will also try some of the other streaming sites.

  I can NOT get it to work with CameraWare.  They have a Windows program that you have to run. 

 

Recession in the United States

  I am not sure if the United States is in a recession.  I do not think the experts know for sure.
My guess is that we are in a recession because we had the following;  January-July 1980, July 1981 to November 1982, July 1990 to March 1991 and March 2001 to November 2001.
  So if those were all recessions I would say yes we are in one for sure.
  I think of a depression as something like the "Great Depression" which ran from August 1929 to March 1933.  I was not alive during the great depression but it had an effect on me.  My mother and father were alive.  My mother  suffered during the depression.  Her mother was a single mother and her father refused to pay any child support.  She was very poor and she went hungry often.
  The great depression made my father and mother Democrats.  Not only did it make them Democrats but because of President Hoover they would never vote for any Republican.  A photo of Franklin D. Roosevelt hung in their house all their lives.  Later a photo of John F. Kennedy would hang beside that photo.

  I can remember experts saying a year or two ago that we would never have a depression like the 1929 depression.  They said because we had controls in place to keep it from happening. 
  I wonder if they feel the same way now.
  A real bad depression now days would cause a great deal of pain and suffering.  During the great depression many Americans lived on farms.  They might be dirt poor but many of them could grow or raise something to eat.
  Now days with people being kicked out of their homes and with prices of food and gas going sky high I am not sure what would happen to us. 

  The mess that we are in now again was caused by Republicans and big business. 
  Greed and lack of controls created this depression. 
  In seven months we will have an election and in January we will have a new president.
  I think the new president will be a Democrat.  After the last depression and FDR saving the United States he was elected to four terms in office (1933 to 1945).  FDR died in office in 1945 and Harry S. Truman because President of the United States.  HST filled out his term of office and was then elected to one term.
 

Playing with Ubuntu 8.04

  I been playing most of the day with my 32 bit version of Ubuntu 8.04 (Linux).  I got the screen size set now.  I can not get a webcam working with it.  I did log into Stickam and I could send out audio.  I was thinking I could feed the audio from my scanner (police, EMS and other stuff) out.  I may look for some sort of Linux driver that will send out as video my desktop.  You have lots of things to play with when you mess with Linux.

  Yes gang, I did check a number of times to see if I got my tax refund.  No tax refund.  None of us got it today.  I am surprised that a number of you that got your money did not leave a comment.  Maybe they lied and are not sending out money.

  It is now the last day of April.  Tomorrow will be May day.  I wonder if there will be some sort of protest in down town Miami.  I do not want to go to any event until I get my new camera.
  Today I was thinking about not getting a new camera and how much that $300.00 would help me out.  Yes, you know me guys.  Soon as I get that money I am going to on line so fast ordering a new camera. 
  If I get that new camera, because of the zoom lens, I am going to get out and shoot some photos and some video.

Ubuntu 7.10 to 8.04

I did the upgrade from Linux Ubuntu 7.10 to 8.04 and it took hours.  The upgrade went OK except my screen is set to 800 x 600.  I cannot get it set to 1680 x 1050.  I had the same problem with the 7.10 install and it was an easy fix.  I can not remember how I did it.  I wrote it down someplace but can't find it.
  I will get it fixed.  Until I get it fixed I will have to use Windows.  No way can I use a screen with a setting of 800 x 600.

  It is 0200 and I am going to bed.  I have had a long day.
It took over five hours to get the upgrade to Ubuntu 8.04 all installed.

Update:  I got the screen settting to 1680 x 1050 now.

What am I going to be doing all day tomorrow?

OK friends how well do you know Jim Howard?  What am I going to be doing all day tomorrow?
OK OK you know me way too well.  Yes I am going to be sitting at my computer waiting for the email from the bank saying that the tax refund has gone into my bank.
  I will only be getting $300.00 but I still love President Bush and think he is the greatest President of all time.  He is better than Washington and Lincoln.

God bless President Bush.
Now what am I going to do with that money?  Do you think you know Jim Howard?

[1]  I will save the money so I can eat during May.
[2]  I will save the money.
[3]  I will take out a life membership in the National Rifle Association.
[4]  I will buy a digital camera.

OK how well do you know me?

I bet you all got the answer correct.

Hannah Montana Photo

  I have not seen "Vanity Fair" magazine.  What kind of magazine is it?  Is it too late to invest in the magazine.  They are going to have half-naked photos of Hannah Montana in their magazine.  I guess her name is Miley Cyrus. 
  Is it too late to invest in Miley Cyrus?
  I do not have cable TV.  I think I should get cable TV so I can get The Disney Channel.
  I have heard of Hannah Montana and have even watched the show a few times. 
  Hannah Montana (Miley Cyrus) is 15 years old.

  When you see her fans on TV they look like little girls. 
  It makes you wonder why she could not wait three years.  At 18 years of age she could have photos in "Playboy" if she wanted. 

  OK enough of the joking around.  The truth is I do not see anything wrong with people being nude.  We have problems in this nation with the nude body.
  I do have problems with greedy people using to sex sell magazines and to sell stars and to sell TV shows.
  We let people use sex to lead us around by our dicks.  They lead us to the check out lane and then they empty our billfolds.  We let them do it.

  Let me say again I do not object to the nude body.  I do object to greedy people knowing they can show some skin and milk us of our      money.

The Spider on My Patio

  I saw this spider the other day when I was watering the plants.  I never saw a spider that looks like this one.

    Plus he has a big web right where I sit on a chair in the dark.  I admit I am not your out door type.  Spiders scare me.  I never saw one like this and that color is scary.  I wonder if he is venomous.
  "...Spiders are quite common in Florida, and can be found anywhere where insects can be found. They range in size from the huge orb-weaving Nephila clavipes (golden silk orbweaver) and Argiope aurantia (yellow garden spider) to the tiny jumping spiders (Family: Salticidae). Some spin magnificant webs, waiting to catch their prey in mid-flight. Others, such as the wolf spiders (Family: Lycosidae) and jumping spiders, actively hunt their prey. Some spiders lie motionless on or in flowers waiting to ambush their prey that fly to them..." 
Floridanature.org 

  The spider looks a little bit like a Spinybacked Orbweaver. 
  I do not know what sort of spider it is but I do know I am not going out on the patio tonight.
  Maybe I can move him.  I hate to kill anything.