Cancer Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread You can't read or write on a napkin in darkness. Falls, I grant you. I'll grant the reading part, but I have written on a napkin in the dark, and later made use of that note. You can't use a pda in darkness. The act of powering it up destroys the darkness, and that can be crucial. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archermoo Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread And yet the napkin handles falls and power outages better. Well, I've never had a PDA fail from being dropped, and I'd dispute the power outage bit. I can happily continue using the PDA if the power failed, as it has it's own power and light. Sure, it'll run out of charge eventually, but I can always go to a napkin at that point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archermoo Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread I'll grant the reading part' date=' but I [i']have[/i] written on a napkin in the dark, and later made use of that note. You can't use a pda in darkness. The act of powering it up destroys the darkness, and that can be crucial. Heh. You actually can power up most PDAs without the backlight coming on. You just need to know ahead of time so that you can set the backlight to off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archermoo Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread You can't read or write on a napkin in darkness. Falls, I grant you. And in a pinch, you can even use the PDA as a light source to allow you to write on a napkin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread You probably don't know the answer to this, but ... How long does the display of a pda fluoresce after it's powered down? CRTs continue for quite a while, as do a number of materials at a level that's difficult to detect. I know a long, sad, expensive story where it was found at the end that the window material in a new spectroscopic instrument was found to fluoresce. A catastrophic problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Man Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread You can't use a pda in darkness. The act of powering it up destroys the darkness, and that can be crucial. Especially when they're after you... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliceTheOwl Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread Funny ... I don't associate paper napkins with rejection notes. (Obviously I didn't get around enough to have discovered that channel the hard way. ) The proclivity for physicists to be seized by ideas anywhere has led to several well-documented cases of important ideas starting off as scribblings on a napkin. In the old Physics Bldg on the U of Washington campus' date=' used to be they had one such napkin -- from the Northlake Tavern here in Seattle, IIRC -- literally enshrined in a display case on a wall.[/quote'] Neither do I. Sometimes Josh or I will scribble game ideas or story notes on napkins. Apparently we do our most creative thinking in restaurants. You'd think I'd've learned to carry a little pad of paper by now . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread Or bought a PDA: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archermoo Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread You probably don't know the answer to this, but ... How long does the display of a pda fluoresce after it's powered down? CRTs continue for quite a while, as do a number of materials at a level that's difficult to detect. I know a long, sad, expensive story where it was found at the end that the window material in a new spectroscopic instrument was found to fluoresce. A catastrophic problem. That would depend on the PDA I would guess, though you are correct in assumning that I've never really looked into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Man Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread My old Palm V used to fluoresce for about five minutes after power-off. But not brightly enough to matter. What was worse was the faint, high-pitched whine that it would make if the backlight was on. Since I was trying to read e-books in bed, that was intolerable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archermoo Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread My old Palm V used to fluoresce for about five minutes after power-off. But not brightly enough to matter. What was worse was the faint' date=' high-pitched whine that it would make if the backlight was on. Since I was trying to read e-books in bed, that was intolerable.[/quote'] Ick. My III would do the same fluorescence, but didn't whine. My current one doesn't fluoresce once off to my eye, but I'm guessing it probably would to the instruments that Cancer is talking about. Well, that and it has a number of LEDs that come on when it is on as well... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread Dammit, I hate it when I inadvertantly zap a file while I'm trying to get it into source control. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigdamnhero Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread I just sent an email to some folks, and forgot the attachment. One of them responded saying please send the attachment. So I replied, saying "Oops, my bad, here's the attachment." And then promptly hit send without attaching the file. I really should just go back to bed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archermoo Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread Dammit' date=' I [u']hate[/u] it when I inadvertantly zap a file while I'm trying to get it into source control. I feel your pain on that one. My t-shirt is at home somewhere... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliceTheOwl Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread I just sent an email to some folks, and forgot the attachment. One of them responded saying please send the attachment. So I replied, saying "Oops, my bad, here's the attachment." And then promptly hit send without attaching the file. I really should just go back to bed. I did something similar a few dozen times. Except when I replied and remembered to attach the file, I sent it to myself, not the person who wanted the attachment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliceTheOwl Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Re: The cranky thread My preliminary apologies if I seem snippy at all this week; I've become Handwriting Analyst and She-Who-Works-On-White-Space-Grid-Until-Eyes-Cross in addition to all of my usual crap. In other words, I'm working on entering a LOT of entries for the company mailing list, and I'm entering it on a blank grid. The swaths of white space are giving me one serious headache. We USED to have a utility that spared me such cruelty, but my boss thought he'd be clever and made it obsolete. Not pleased. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SatinKitty Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 Re: The cranky thread I'm having trouble walking. A toe on my left foot had an ingrown nail clipped today, so I try to stay off it, and I have a pulled muscle in my right groin area. So walking irritates it. Owie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Man Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 Re: The cranky thread Speaking of which, I've had some plantar fascitis in my right foot for a couple of months now. That's irritating. And since I've been favoring that foot, now my left knee is getting borked. Meanwhile, either I slept funny last night or I carried the boy too much yesterday, because my back is tight and achy. I put muscle relaxant patches on it, but the patches pinch and pull at my skin. In other news, realtors must die. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klytus Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 Re: The cranky thread I'm having trouble walking. A toe on my left foot had an ingrown nail clipped today' date=' so I try to stay off it, and I have a pulled muscle in my right groin area. So walking irritates it. Owie.[/quote'] If you've not done so already, soak the foot in salt water. Then, bite the bullet and use a nail file and/or clippers to get in there and trim the nail back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliceTheOwl Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 Re: The cranky thread Actually, trimming the nail is going to make it worse the next time. What you do (according to my doctor) is, you soak the foot in Epsom salts and water for 20 minutes. Then you take a cotton ball, and roll it up until you have a thin, strong strand. You work that under the corner of the nail on either side, much like you poke a piece of dental floss between your teeth. Gently pull upwards to guide the nail out of the skin. Do that twice a day for two weeks, and the problem should clear up entirely, according to my doctor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 Re: The cranky thread Doctors! Hah! What do they know? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 Re: The cranky thread You can call up Markdoc's post list and see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klytus Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 Re: The cranky thread Actually, trimming the nail is going to make it worse the next time. What you do (according to my doctor) is, you soak the foot in Epsom salts and water for 20 minutes. Then you take a cotton ball, and roll it up until you have a thin, strong strand. You work that under the corner of the nail on either side, much like you poke a piece of dental floss between your teeth. Gently pull upwards to guide the nail out of the skin. Do that twice a day for two weeks, and the problem should clear up entirely, according to my doctor. When I had an ingrown nail, I used the nail-file to dig the nail out of the skin, and then I trimmed it back. Yeah, it hurt like a bear, but once it was cut, there was much relief. I was diligent about working that nail until it grew back "normally" again. Of course, the worst nail experience I had was when I slammed my finger in a door (not on purpose, I assure you). After the initial treatments and such (which is likely TMI for some folks), it eventually got to the point where I had to remove the fingernail. That experience did not send me to my happy place, let me tell you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliceTheOwl Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 Re: The cranky thread I have very, very thick toenails. Apparently they grew a protective coating in defense from my previous attacks with nail scissors. I have yet to dig out any ingrown nails without it involving blood and the sensation I'm stabbing myself with a stiletto, to the hilt. I'd rather listen to my doctor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archermoo Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 Re: The cranky thread I have very, very thick toenails. Apparently they grew a protective coating in defense from my previous attacks with nail scissors. I have yet to dig out any ingrown nails without it involving blood and the sensation I'm stabbing myself with a stiletto, to the hilt. I'd rather listen to my doctor. Me, I just wait until they are horribly ingrown and infected and require surgery. Well, at least that is what I used to do. And to prove how stubborn/stupid I can be, I did it a total of around 6 times. Now I basically do what your Doc says, though generally without the Epsom salts. Haven't had a bad ingrown toenail since I was 18 or so... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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