Tuesday, as I mentioned in a comment to a post on Liz's Finding life hard? I had a neat, weather-related experience. As I wrote, there, "While working in the yard, this morning (a balmy 17 degrees C when I went out), I noticed that my clothes were suddenly soggy - and that the concrete patio was completely dampened. The dew point dropped, suddenly, and the moisture came out of the air in an instant! I've been caught in sudden fog while flying, but this was a new experience."
About an hour later, I noticed that the sun had come out, again. Looking out the window, I saw the fog bank that had just moved out. Grabbing a camera, I photographed the beautiful scene. In the first photo, below, The fog bank is the lower, dark mass of cloud, separated from the higher-level clouds, in the photo, by a small strip of blue sky.
Below is a zoomed-in photo of the largest piece of blue sky. Obviously, as is generally true when fog is present, the winds were light-to-non-existent; but, eventually, we had a totally blue sky.
This was the week to get a bunch of paperwork/licensure completed. Last week my renewed passport arrived, the old passport having expired in 2017 or 2018. This week, I took that passport plus a bunch of other paperwork to our local driver's license office (about 1 mile from our home) to get my "Real ID" driver's license, along with early renewal of the old license that was to expire next spring.
Below is a copy of information from Kansas Real ID web page delineating paperwork requirements. I have high-lighted the documents that I actually took with me. Please note that, by taking my passport, I was not required to present any of the documents listed in item 4. That would have been a real drag since I've changed my name twice and I'm not convinced that I have original copies of the documents attesting to those changes. Fortunately, for me, I proved to the Federal government, many years ago, that I am who I say I am, using my current name that was assumed in 1979, and they no longer require me to present documentation of name changes.
That same web site explains the need filled by a Real ID.
The REAL ID Act was passed by federal lawmakers in 2005 to enact the 9/11 Commission’s recommendation for a “set standard for the issuance of sources of identification.” This established a minimum security standard for state-issued driver’s licenses.
Beginning October 1, 2020, anyone 18 years and older will need a REAL ID compliant driver’s license or another acceptable form of ID to fly within the United States.
In addition, a REAL ID will be required to enter federal facilities where identification is currently required for entrance.
Courts, Post Offices, Social Security offices do not require identification for entrance, so they are exempt.
Kansas began issuing REAL ID credentials in August 2017. REAL ID is not a required credential but will help ease the check-in process when flying or entering a federally protected facility.
Since I no longer volunteer as a Government Liaison, I don't know why I should need to enter a federally protected facility - nor do I anticipate any need to fly; but, I've learned in life that I should be prepared. A couple of times I've been caught short by previously-made short-sighted decisions. The consequences of those decisions cost me money, time, and convenience.
Earlier in the week, I went into Wichita to renew my car tag which was set to expire at the end of October. Unfortunately, during the past year, the car tag office that had been in our City of Derby for several years had been closed. I wanted to go online to renew my tag; but, unfortunately, if I ever received a notice for renewal, I could not find it and a PIN from that notice is required to renew online. After waiting for 1.5 hours, my phone number appeared on the queue display as being the next person to be called. At that point, one of the employees got in front of our crowd of about 100 people to announce that another tag office, about a 7-minute drive away by freeway, had only one person to serve. About half of the crowd disappeared to avail themselves of a shorter wait. As I had taken Hunky Husband's tag renewal notice and check with me, I was able to pay for and receive the little stickers to add to each of our license plates (below photo).
Hunky Husband finally got around to opening the box to extract his new computer. In the olden days, one received an Owner's Manual with electronics. It was, for a computer, perhaps 100-200 pages long. Prominently featured in that booklet would be a cartoon of the front and back of the unit with arrows pointing to each feature and assigning a number. That number could then be looked up on the same/next page to give the name/description of the feature. Not anymore!
With this computer came an 8-page booklet, Quick Setup Guide. The front of the guide shows cartoons of only the ports into which one is to insert a plug with a representation of the plug to be plugged into each port. Well, I set about hooking it up (without need for the 8-page booklet!) and got to this point (photo, below) when I was stumped. Arrgh! This computer, being a new model, has no VGA port. Oh, swell. I hadn't even thought about HH's monitor being so old that it is VGA. **Gnashing teeth** Now, I must decide whether to go with an adaptive cable or bite the bullet and get HH a modern monitor. As this will probably be HH's last desktop computer system, I'll purchase the monitor. It'll work out better, in the end, I'm sure.
Take another look at the above photo. At the upper right-hand corner of the back of the unit you'll see "something" (closeup, below).
It looks like a short-wire antenna (WIFI?) to me. Whatever it is, it is flimsy. The upturned leg at the bottom was bent at about 45 degrees when I first saw it. I decided that it was supposed to have a plastic cover similar to the black plastic box 6" below it, below the upper fan. I looked for it in the plastic bag in which the unit had been encased, and found it; so, the fragile thing, whatever it is, is now protected by a black plastic box. (I can't really read the lettering on the thing or I might be able to learn definitively what it is.) I've made an exhaustive search, online, for labeled diagrams/photos of this computer. The online "User's Guide" to this computer has zero graphics included! In fact, by reading it one might conclude that software setup is the only real problem with computers.
Below are scans of the two pages (front cover and inside front cover) in the HP Quick Setup Guide that include graphics.
That is a wild weather story. I worked with an engineer from Michigan that thought our California winters were mild and he was very frugal so he was not using a heater in his house. Well one day the temperature inside the house dropped below the dew point. Hard lesson for him as everything became damp.
As for the computer, I would recommend getting a new widescreen monitor with an HDMI connection. They are quite cheap at Costco.
Posted by: Ingineer66 | October 19, 2019 at 10:16 PM
I never even thought about HH having a VGA and needing the right kind of connector - kind of a nasty surprise. You can tell him that the new monitor is for his Christmas present :). I have no idea what that is on the back of it, as mine doesn't have all the black boxes on. You are probably correct that it is for wifi, but mine is on a cable so I didn't have to worry about that.
Posted by: bogie | October 20, 2019 at 04:44 AM
Ingineer--Wow! Inside! That would be a surprise. The apartments that I had in California all had heat and a couple of them had air conditioning. During the winter the heat did get used a bit.
Yes, I've already ordered HH a monitor with HDMI. It should be here by Tuesday or Wednesday. HH didn't want a wide screen, though, so I ordered one that is 21.5". His old monitor is 19". With 8% tax, I think it came to $126. As I told HH, as cheap as monitors are, these days, one should get the size they want!
Bogie--Obviously, I didn't think about it. One of the "black boxes" on HH's new machine - the one nearer the edge of the two that are shown - moves. Your dad had jiggled it up and down a few times since it has a "down" arrow on it and it slides, vertically. (He tried to remove the black things to see if one hid the VGA port and even bent the fragile piece up/down a couple of times saying, "No, that's not an antenna!" Sometimes I feel the need to handcuff HH - lol.)
I learned from a video that the sliding black thing is the lock to the side access panel (no, that wasn't shown explicitly, I just happened to notice that to access the interior the guy slid the lock before removing the side access panel.) The black boxes are probably specific to HP computers. BTW: HH's desktop is wired to the router - see the cable into the ethernet port just above the two "blue" USB ports.
Posted by: Cop Car | October 20, 2019 at 10:05 AM
My HP computer is wired to the router but does also have WiFi. We have it wirelessly connected to the printer.
Posted by: Ingineer66 | October 20, 2019 at 10:58 AM
Ingineer--Ah, another HP user. I've been partial to HPs since I bought the HP-35 calculator in about 1973. Then, I bought an HP-45 for HH a couple of years later. In about 1976 or so, HH gave me the HP-19C - with the thermal printer. In about 1990, HH bought me an HP-48GX - a graphing calculator that I use to this day (just not for graphing or, indeed, anything very intense!)
I've had at least three HP tower desktops and one HP laptop - I don't know about HH (that would take a lot of thought on my part.) I think the rest of my laptops have been Toshibas. My first personally owned PC was a "portable" - 1989 Sharp PC-7000 that weighed 14 pounds but had a screen much better than others - not a laptop by anyone's definition!
HH's new, customized HP cost a few dollars more than the Sharp PC-7000 - without accounting for inflation. Accounting for inflation, HH's new computer cost half as much as the Sharp. This is a good thing since my retirement income, adjusted for inflation, is worth about half of my 1989 salary.
Posted by: Cop Car | October 20, 2019 at 08:27 PM
This is a fun topic. I made it through college without an HP-48. I had an HP 11C. I was too poor to buy an expensive one.
My aunt gave us a Portable Computer when she upgraded at some point that resembled a portable sewing machine case when it was all closed up. I think that was the first machine that I connected to Prodidgy on. Soon after I bought an Apple Power PC and got the real internet. Started on the HP computer bandwagon after that.
As for lack of documentation in products, I bought a laser range finder for golf last weekend. It came with a 3 by 3 card that said thank you for your Purchase. To see the quick start guide or manuals visit www....
Posted by: Ingineer66 | October 23, 2019 at 12:23 AM
My word! You are so knowledgeable!
I hate it when you have to provide proof of who you are. It always seems so complicated and it's different for every agency.
Posted by: Liz Hinds | October 25, 2019 at 07:39 AM
"The black boxes are probably specific to HP computers"
I have an HP desktop that is only a couple of months old and it doesn't have the black boxes. Maybe it is specific to custom configured? Both of my laptops have been HP's and my last two desktops have been HP. Before that was a VP or maybe VM (Vector Matrix?) and before that was a Gateway. I don't remember what the used x386 was - maybe Compaq.
Posted by: bogie | October 27, 2019 at 04:53 AM
Ingineer--You've tweaked my interest to the extent that I've started a posting on electronics in my past - mostly Heathkit and HP. I laughed at your range finder (lack of) instructions. When HH's new monitor came, the only instructions were pictograms on the protective sheet covering the screen.
Liz--You flatter me! I don't mind having to prove who I am - which is a good thing considering the military programs on which I worked for 14 years. Fortunately, I've always found the government employees (federal, state, local) to be easy to work with.
Bogie--Good thought on the customization. That hadn't occurred to me. That you can trace your computer brands back to the x386 is impressive!
Posted by: Cop Car | October 27, 2019 at 11:52 AM