Technical Troubles--Continued

(Image from:  Superpages--Top 10 Common Computer Problems)

Well folks, I know it's been over a month since I posted anything.

You see, shortly after my desktop was declared Dead on Arrival (DOA) by the nearby computer repair shop, my laptop need repair.

Technically, it was a simple problem:  Replacing the power receptacle that had come loose, which was only intermittently recharging the laptop.

As it turned out though, the part needed to be ordered from a warehouse in California.  But Californians are dealing with bigger wildfires than we are in Washington State.  So shipment of the new power receptacle was delayed until some of "the smoke cleared."

I'm still in the process of setting up my laptop with the additional functions I relied on my desktop for, along with trying to utilize my iPad Pro more effectively, so I can blog remotely.

I have a short post scheduled for tomorrow.

Thank you for your patience!

Desktop Now Deceased

(Image from Schuyler House)

Last week, my desk top, a 10 year old HP, began locking up.  Since I was on duty, I didn't have the time to deal with it other than attempt to go through on-line tutorials to figure out what was wrong.

Then one morning when I turned it on, the screen displayed the Mircosoft icon and the words:  Preparing Automatic Repair.

And it remained in this state.

Once again, I attempted another on-line tutorial fix, but to no avail.

So I took it to a nearby computer repair shop.  A couple hours later, my desktop was declared DOA.

Two capacitors on the motherboard were fried, and since the system was originally designed for Windows Vista, it wasn't worth replacing.

I'm also having some issues with my laptop:  The media player won't play, and the power receptacle seems loose.

Meanwhile, I can't manage to get my iPad Pro to do what I've had my succession of laptops, and desktops to do.

So the long delays between blogposts will be longer I'm afraid, as I embark on a quest to replace my desktop.

Slowdown at Station WTFO

(Image found on Facebook)

This past week has been a long and intense one at the agency where I work.  And things are likely to stay this way for the foreseeable future.

I also have a growing list of domestic projects I need to do, along with gaming projects I want to do.

But the news cycle, both fake and real, continues on.

There's a lot going on within our country...

(Image by Chip Bok in reference to the Google engineer being fired for his "anti-diversity" memo)

...and beyond our borders...

(Image by Michael Ramirez, in reference to Trump's "Fire and Fury" rhetoric in response to Kim Jong Un threatening Guam)

(Image by Michael Ramirez in reference to Maduro's power grab in Venezuela)

...that I'd love to post about at length.

Unfortunately, I no longer have the time to read in-depth about current events, let alone add my two cents to the subjects at hand in a coherent manner.

What I'm hoping I can do is post at least once a week.  I know I've often done this in the past due to my rotating work schedule, or going on vacations.  But this slowdown will more the norm than the exception.

I'm thinking of something along the lines of a Top Story of the Week, or Weekly Roundup of news, along with applicable, attributed political cartoons.  Or both, if I can manage it.

Either way, I'm not planning on signing off the air anytime soon.  Just needing to slow down the transmission rate.

Thank you for staying tuned to Station WTFO.

Of Spammers and Derelict Sites

(Image by Seraphmx)

A few weeks back, I posted about a possible hack attack against my blog.  A week later, I found another litter of spam in my Read List.  I found a solution on-line, and I haven't had any additional issues--yet.  While I posted it on my Stern Rake Studio blog, I forgot to do so on Station WTFO.

My apologies for not posting this soon in order to re-assure readers.

Here's what I found:

 Last week I discovered the Reading List on my blog's administration page was overrun by Indonesian gambling sites. 

In response, I changed my password and filed a complaint with Google, who owns and runs Blogger.

The gambling spam was still in my Reading List the following day, so I fired-off another complaint to Google.

On the morning of the third day, the spam was gone, so I thought my problems were over.

But then a couple days later, I discovered two spam posts from the same Indonesian gambling sites.

This time I Googled "Spam found on Blogger Reading List."  Fortunately, I found a woman who had the same problem two years ago.

The first person to respond told her that the problem wasn't her blog, but one or more of the blogs she had on her reading list.  Spammers hijacked one of the blogs she was following and was using to spam other blogs.

It was like facehuggers infesting a derelict spaceship.

(Image:  The derelict ship in "Alien," found on Electric Shadow)

The recommended solution was to find the infected blog and delete it from her Reading List. 

I was following over 100 blogs.

Was I reading them every day?

No, of course not, but they were blogs I was interested in and would check out some of them when the mood struck me.

So I scrolled through my list.

I found five that were infected.  

However, I didn't just delete the five infected ones--I deleted over 40.  Some of them were from close friends and family.

These blog owners hadn't posted in anywhere from 1-5 years.  I figured sooner or later, these "cyber derelicts" would be too inviting for facehugger/spammers.

There were some I hated deleting, but I didn't want to run the risk of being spammed, or worse, passing along viruses.

(This Halloween-appropriate image found on The Richest: The 10 Most Dangerous Computer Viruses Ever)

Now I scroll down my Reading List every day I log on and scan for facehugger/spammers.

Possible Blogger Account Hack

I think my Blogger account has been hacked.

On my Blogger homepage there's usually a Reading List displaying the latest posts from the blogs I follow.

About an hour ago, instead of seeing other bloggers' activities, I now have a list of Indonesian gambling sites.

I filed a complaint to Google, which runs Blogger, along with initiating a password change.

I'm not tech savvy enough to determine whether reading any of my blogs will cause any virus or malware to be transferred, but I thought I'd transmit this warning.

I hope to get this resolved soon.

Please accept my apologies.

New Website

A friend of mine started a website a few months ago, called Bootstrap America.  I've provided a link to the Station under the Commentator tab. 

Last week she asked me to be a guest-blogger, so now I've been scrounging the internet for material to add to her site.

I don't have any OWS stories, I just hijacked the latest photo she posted on Facebook.

Learning to Link & Lightening Up

A blog is a perpetual work-in-progress, since there is always something that can be improved upon. A friend of mine just showed me how to use the Link function in Blogger's toolbar. 

So now I can turn this:  http://www.marksteyn.com/ ...

...into this:  Mark Steyn 

It may not improve my writing, but it will help make my posts more presentable.

And speaking of presentable, I also changed the template.  Initially, I liked the black, X-File-esque background.  The black template went well with the heading photo.  But after reading comments from professional writers, I learned that most people hate black backgrounds with white letters.  Apparently it's also harder on a reader's eyes.

So I tried "lightening up."  Unfortunately all the lighter templates used dark lettering, which blended into the heading photo, making it nearly impossible to read.  Plus the dark photo, stood out like the proverbial sore thumb.  The current template, I hope is a happy compromise.