Mr. Wizard Knows...

The REAL reason Microsoft killed Windows XP!

2013-07-16T02:56:00.002-07:00

Hint: It's NOT, as Tom's Hardware claims, because XP is a "dying, cobwebbed platform".

By now, it's old news that Microsoft will no longer provide critical security updates to the Windows XP operating system.

And it's old news that the Windows 8 OS is a marketing disaster. Reviewers have panned it, and users have rejected it.   Desktop and laptop OEMs can't even give it away! So buyers of new PC computers are being force-fed Windows 8: Dell Computer now charges a premium of $45 to "upgrade" new Dell desktops from Windows 8 to Windows 7!   No, that's not a typo. You have to pay NOT to have Windows 8.

Of course, this should come as no surprise: Windows 8 being marketed as a desktop OS, though clearly it's designed as a mobile device OS.   So why would Microsoft push so hard to put Windows 8 -- a bad mobile OS -- onto desktop computers?

The reason is obvious: Microsoft wants to be a bigger player in mobile computing revolution.

Not that they haven't been trying. Microsoft was there at the beginning of the mobile revolution. First there was Windows, then Windows CE 3. Windows CE 4. Windows Mobile OS.    Windows Phone OS.

Yet, for all their efforts, they've had to settle for a mere 4% share of the market. Now they are barely a footnote in the war for mobile dominance between Android (52%) and Apple IOS (39%)!

So Microsoft needed a new plan. I can imagine the brainstorming session going something like this:

"The desktop computer market -- our market -- is dying. Mobile devices are the future. Unfortunately, everybody knows our mobile OS (Windows CE) stinks. So we need a new mobile OS -- call it 'Windows 8' -- that just so happens to run on desktop computers. Wink wink. Then we kill Windows XP. What are those suckers gonna do, switch to Linux? Ha ha. Nope, they're gonna buy Windows 8. Ka-Ching! But here's the best part: When they shop for a smartphone or tablet computer, they'll want their good old Windows 8. Ka-ching. Ka-ching! Ka-ching! Hah! Take that, Android!"

Unfortunately, they overlooked a small detail: The mobile computing environment is very different from a desktop environment. For instance, desktops rarely have touch screens; so good luck trying to "pinch-zoom" using a mouse! And desktop users demand multitasking, while mobile users tend to focus on a single task at a time. I could go on, but why bother?

Microsoft realized their mistake, but only after they released Windows 8, and the user backlash hit. So they frantically patched it. And updated it. And the Windows 8.1 release is now reasonably functional for keyboard and mouse users.

Unfortunately, Windows 8 is also a schizophrenic mess! The poor OS isn't quite sure what it's supposed to be. Is it a desktop OS? A mobile OS? Touchpad OS? Yes, it's all of those. And none of those.

It just needs a bit of patching. And some updating. Then Windows will be wonderful!

Whoa! As Yogi Berra would say, "It's like deja vu, all over again!"

What to look for when shopping for a new garbage disposal

2012-01-21T04:00:00.000-08:00

If your kitchen drain tends to clog when you use your garbage disposal, it's not your fault, nor the fault of your plumbing. More likely, the fault lies with the galvanized steeldeep inside your disposal, where they figure nobody will ever look!

It took me a long time to figure out that my galvanized-steel disposal was causing my kitchen drain to clog. I guess I never gave my garbage disposal any thought, unless it stopped running, or started leaking.

Actually, even then I didn't give it much thought. I just replaced it with something cheap with a hefty amount of horsepower.   I figured that was important, because every disposal in the store has a huge horsepower sign plastered on the side.

And that strategy seemed to work. Every disposal I ever bought was unstoppable, with plenty of power to grind up everything. (Except maybe silverware, which disposals tend to snack on like they're nachos.)

Unfortunately, my kitchen drain is not unstoppable. So after a while, the time would come when I had to be careful how fast I fed the disposal, or the drain would clog. My plumber said the problem was that our house had "old pipes". Seemed reasonable. So I learned to be careful to not put too much garbage in the disposal at one time. And I learned how to take apart the sink trap apart to pull out the clog.

Eventually though, I began to suspect that maybe the age of the pipes wasn't the problem.   I mean, why is it the drain never clogged when the disposal was new?

Ignoring the "wisdom" of my plumber, I set out to look into the situation myself. Literally. I got a flashlight and peered into the mouth of the disposal.   Hah! Just as I expected, there was yucky stuff in there.

What I didn't expect, was how corroded the inside of of the disposal was, given that it was scarcely two years old, and still bright and shiny on the outside!

Here's a picture of the inside of this "corrosion resistant" disposal:

See that hole (circled in red) on the left? That's where the garbage is supposed to go into the drain, only after it's been ground into tiny bits small enough to pass through the pipes without issue.

Well, that hole isn't supposed to be there! There should be a metal-toothed shredder ring there, guarding the exit port. But the shredder-ring teeth -- and most of the turntable -- have rusted away. So instead of holding all the garbage until it was properly ground up, this rusted hulk let huge chunks out that clogged up the drain.

Yet, on the outside, the disposal looks nearly new! And that's what is so mean about putting galvanized-steel parts on the inside, where they have no business being. The outside can look almost new, and the horsepower sticker on that powerful motor will still be shiny. But the grind-chamber will have rusted away, and you'll need to keep your plumber's phone number on speed-dial!

What's the solution?

Don't waste your money on a disposal with a powerful motor, if any of the parts that get wet are made of galvanized steel! Make sure that whatever you buy has only stainless steel components in the grind chamber. Then, if you have money to burn and it makes you happy, go ahead and spring for that manly motor option.

It bears repeating: Galvanized steel parts on the inside of a disposal are not acceptable. Their use is unconscionable, and frankly borders on fraud.

What's so bad about galvanized steel?

Galvanized steel isn't bad --- provided it's used in an appropriate environment. The steel is coated with a very thin protective zinc-coating, which can do a great job of preventing rust, provided that zinc shell remains completely intact. But one little nick, and the "corrosion-clock" starts ticking. Eventually, electrolytic action will turn every last bit of the underlying steel to rust.

So galvanized steel isn't bad, unless it's used in a harsh wet environment. Like, say, on the inside a garbage disposal?

How do I know if galvanized steel is used in my disposal?

Unfortunately, sometimes it's hard to be sure. You may have to decode "marketing-speak" terms, such as:

Corrosion-Resistant ==> Galvanized Steel

Corrosion-Proof ==> Stainless Steel

One thing you can be sure about, is disposal manufacturers love galvanized steel components! They are cheap to make, and most people don't even know they should care. Better yet, they ensure that people will keep buying new disposals, every few years like clockwork.

Manufacturers have a good idea of exactly how long their galvanized steel components will last, and set their warranty period accordingly. If your disposal has a two-year warranty, you can be sure all the galvanized parts on the inside will have dissolved after about two years.

Summary

Even if your garbage-disposal seems to be working OK, I suggest you get a flashlight and peek inside -- after you run it, of course, to get rid of the really gross stuff. If all you see is shiny metal, then no worries!

But if you see rusted metal, and holes where there should be metal, start shopping for a new disposal with stainless steel grind components. Humongous horsepower is optional.

Virgin Mobile Android Phone Activation Error: 06-07-5910

2011-12-07T20:06:00.000-08:00

If you're trying to activate a Virgin Mobile Android mobile phone (e.g. Motorola Triumph, Samsung Intercept. etc.) don't panic if you get error code 06-07-5910:

Service is not

available

Error: 06-07-5910

Because, there is a simple solution:

Turn off your phone's WiFi before you activate it

That's because WiFi and 3G data service are often mutually exclusive. If you turn on WiFi, the 3G (cell network) data connection automatically turns off. And vice versa.

Normally, this is exactly what you want. But during the activation routine, when the phone tries to test the quality of the 3G data connection, it discovers there is no 3G data at all.

So the test fails miserably. Up pops an arcane, misleading error message. As if there were any other kind.

Don't get me started ...

Too late. :-) Properly written -- and tested -- software should have caught this trivial issue, and deactivated WiFi before testing the 3G functionality. Unfortunately, companies don't like to pay programmers to test software, especially if they can get their customers to test it for free. That's like so duh, d00d.

Getting this error wasn't your fault, and it doesn't mean you're dumb. On the contrary, it suggests you're a clever phone-nerd: You figured out, that by activating WiFi, you could play with your new phone immediately, without having to activate it first. There's no shame in wanting to play with it. ;-)

So have fun!

Note: Error codes are very fussy. if you have a "similar" error number -- but not the exact numeric code shown above -- turning off WiFi probably won't help you. You'll need to keep searching the web for the precise error code your phone displayed.

How To Stop GE Refrigerator Buzzing Noise!

2010-08-27T03:55:00.000-07:00

Is there a loud buzzing sound coming from the freezer of your GE refrigerator?   If so, the good news is your fridge is probably not broken. The bad news is you've just joined a club of thousands of GE refrigerator owners, who've discovered their late-model GE refrigerator has serious design defect!

Among the many problems likely to plague a recent model GE refrigerator, one of the worst can be found in the freezer section. Ever notice that your "frost-free" fridge never really fully defrosts?   The ever-growing permafrost on your frozen food, and the ice stuck to the back of the freezer, were clues that something wasn't quite right with your GE refrigerator's freezer.

Of course, all freezers accumulate "frost", as moisture in the air condenses and freezes. That's why frost-free freezers have a heater element that periodically warms the freezer just enough to melt the frost -- but not so much that the food thaws. It's a tricky balance, yet manufacturers have been building freezers that successfully self-defrost, for well over fifty years. Including GE, who used to make well-built, quite, and reliable refrigerators. I know, because my other GE fridge has been running quietly, and defrosting without issue -- for thirty years!   No, that's not a typo. I bought it when I was five. ;-)

Unfortunately, things have changed at GE, and not for the better.

That's why, if you have a relatively new GE fridge, you may have noticed frost building up on the frozen food, and on the the freezer walls. But visible frost is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg: The really nasty ice is hidden behind the walls, in the the coldest part of the freezer; where the evaporator coil cools the air, and the evaporator fan distributes the chilled air. Ice buildup on the evaporator coils is especially insidious, because it quietly degrades the evaporator's efficiency. Ice interferes with the normal air circulation; so the freezer has to work overtime, wasting energy and costing you money.

On the other hand, when ice forms on the evaporator fan, you'll soon know about it: As ice builds up on the fan blades, the blades begin to vibrate. That can build into a loud buzzing noise that's impossible to ignore.

Of course, no fan is perfectly balanced; so all fans vibrate, at least to some degree. That's why GE engineers mounted the fan on a noise-dampening rubber mount. The rubber helps to isolate the fan from the chassis by allowing the fan to wobble as it rotates, absorbing the vibrational energy.

Ironically, the soft rubber mount could be the reason that GE evaporator fans can get so incredibly loud!

You see, the softer the rubber mount, the more vibration it can absorb. Up to a point. Unfortunately, the GE engineers overshot, and made the rubber mount too soft.   Which, isn't a problem as long as the blades are clean, and the fan stays on "low".   But once an ice-laden fan switches to "high", the fan will start wobbling slightly. If the wobble has just the right frequency, it can push the fan into a loud buzzing harmonic vibration. That's similar to the way you can push somebody on a swing higher and higher, without much effort, provided you push at exactly the right time to match the fundamental frequency of the swing.

Fortunately, there's nothing wrong with an iced-up GE refrigerator that a good power-outage can't cure!

And that's why the repairmen GE will cheerfully dispatch to your door absolutely LOVE this problem! All the technician has to do, to "repair" your noisy GE fridge, is unplug it, open the doors, and then fiddle around "adjusting things", until the ice on the fan melts.

Then no more noise. It's a miracle! Worth every penny.   Pay the man.

By now, I'm sure you're asking yourself "What can I do about this problem?"

Well, if your GE fridge is still under warranty, you could try DEMANDING a "moisture kit". That's GE's code for (what I think is) some sort of foam insulation.   I doubt it will work, but it's worth a try. Especially if GE is paying for it. Of course, nobody will ever hear about this (or any other) fix from GE, until after your warranty has expired.

Or, you could file a class-action lawsuit against GE. Some folks in Florida did that, and they got their money back. All they had to do was promise not to say bad things about GE. Nice for them, eh?

Or you can just do what I do:

If the buzzing noise starts in the middle of the night, just turn up the refrigerator's (not the freezer's) temperature setting, until the fan slows down. That will stop the buzzing, so you can get some sleep. Note: The "coldness" is set by the refrigerator temperature control. The freezer control just sets the amount of cold air that's routed to the freezer, versus the refrigerator section.

Eventually though, you will need to melt the frost stuck to the fan blades.

Here are your two options:

1) Speed-defrost: Unplug the fridge, and warm the (empty) freezer with a hair dryer or heat gun (on low). It just takes about 5 minutes. But you do need to be careful: Even a hair dryer can melt plastic parts! So keep it moving, and monitor the temperature with your hand.   Not your good hand. ;-)

2) Ask your grandmother how to manually defrost a refrigerator. A half-century ago, she had to do this every week or so! Hard to believe, I know, but that was back when refrigerators weren't the "advanced electronic marvels" GE now sells. Heh heh. <grimace>

Now, if your grandmother isn't available to help you manually defrost your GE, here's what you do: Remove the frozen food and leave the fridge unplugged (with the freezer door open), until the entire back wall of the freezer is warm to the touch.    This may take several hours, but it's easy to do (provided you can store your frozen food elsewhere), and safest for all the plastic parts, the oh-so-many plastic parts!

Either way, once all the frost build-up is gone, the fan will quiet down. Plus your fridge will be more efficient, allowing the compressor to run less often. That will save energy; and reduce your need for high blood-pressure medication!

Below is a video I made showing how I use a heat gun to carefully "speed-melt" the ice. The video is also on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSbruQKxSq8

Feel free to comment, either here or at the YouTube page. Maybe we'll end up with a community knowledge base that can help all our fellow sufferers cure their "GE Refrigerator Blues".

And speaking of comments, reader "Emily" asked a really good question (in the YouTube comments):

Is there anything I can do to help prevent this problem?

Would raising the temperature setting help? Nope, I've tried that. In fact, it actually seems to make matter worse, at least it did whenever I've tried that. I think it's because the frost buildup starts melting more profusely during defrosts, increasing the odds a stray drip will freeze on the fan blades. I've actually had better luck lowering the temperature, though I can't figure out why that would be. So it is possible that if you started with a completely defrosted freezer, raising the temperature set point would help. I have not tried it though. (Any volunteers feel like testing this strategy for a few months and reporting the results?)

Would keeping the freezer's intake vents (at the bottom rear of the freezer) clear help? Yes and no. Yes, keeping them clear will definitely help your fridge be more efficient, and help keep the freezer colder. So do be careful if you have a lot of frozen food on the bottom of the freezer. Don't let it slide back and block those vents. But no, keeping the vents clear won't help the frost and buzzing fan problem. But it's worthwhile anyway to buy or build wire baskets, and position them in front of the vents, so they can't be blocked. At the very least, you'll end up with a more efficient freezer section.

So, short of buying a non-GE (or Kenmore made by GE), what is the best way to avoid frost build-up and a buzzing freezer fans in a GE refrigerator? ... drum roll ....

Keep the refrigerator and freezer doors closed!

Refrigerators and air conditioners are also dehumidifiers. As warm moist air hits the cold evaporator coils, it cools, causing it to drop its moisture as water droplets on the evaporator coils, resulting in chilled dry air.

In air conditioners, the moisture left behind builds up and forms water run-off. That's why sometimes there's puddle of water under your car when you leave the mall on a hot summer day. It's not from the radiator, it's from the air conditioner!

In freezers, the moisture becomes frost, and soon there's nothing but cold dry air circulating through the fridge. In this closed system, no more frost can form, because the air is drier than the Sahara. But then you go and open the door.   All that nice cold dry air spills out, and warm moist air floods in. That puts another coat of frost on the coils.   Repeat all day long. Then the fridge defrosts, and frost drips onto the fan and freezes. Here come the buzzzzz!

Of course, you have to open the door sometime. Just be sure to wait until dry weather if you need to open the door. Well duh. Didn't you read your GE refrigerator manual? ;-)

One more thing: Way back when I was just beginning to realize how crappy recent-vintage GE refrigerators are, one of the umpteenth repair guys causally mentioned this problem occurs most often in temperate beach areas, not in miserably hot humid areas!    If so, I have a theory why that may be: In areas that often get hot muggy weather, people tend to own, and run, a central (whole-house) air conditioner.   So on hot muggy days, the air in their homes can actually be very dry --- because they're running an air conditioner!

This could explain why GE engineers never noticed this problem: They tested the refrigerators in cool, dry air conditioned offices!

So if you have central air conditioning, it's possible your GE refrigerator really can be frost free!   But please, don't run out and buy a GE air conditioner. I don't want to have to start another blog!

:-)

Addendum

You have certain legal remedies that GE will certainly NOT tell you about. For example, in the U.S. the Federal UCC and the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act spell out your rights. And the state you live in may have even greater consumer protection laws. To get you started, here's a snippet from a Consumer Reports article, which some good information on your rights as a consumer:

What if your refrigerator dies a few months after the manufacturer's warranty expires, and both the store and manufacturer say YOU have to pay to get it fixed?

The Uniform Commercial Code, fully adopted by most states, stipulates that most new consumer products come not only with an express warranty, but also with a so-called implied warranty of merchantability. That is an automatic, unwritten promise that your purchase will perform as commonly expected, including that it will last a reasonable amount of time given the nature of the item. In most states, implied warranties are in effect for four years, although that doesn't necessarily mean a product must last that long. Implied warranties apply to retailers and manufacturers and may be broader than an express warranty.

If you have a problem with a product that you think is the result of an inherent defect, let the manufacturer or retailer (preferably a supervisor) know that you'll take its failure to resolve your complaint as a breach of the implied warranty. If you don't get satisfaction, you may be able to assert your rights through a credit-card chargeback (see box on facing page). If that doesn't work, send a letter threatening legal action. You might need to file a small-claims-court action or consult a lawyer.

However, even if you are entitled to a replacement for your current GE refrigerator that has this problem, don't take it unless the design has changed. Take the cash, and buy something else, something that isn't GE!

Just do some research first, and be sure whatever you buy isn't just as bad. The disregard of customers satisfaction, in the pursuit of ever increasing profit, is certainly not unique to GE.

DIY GE Refrigerator Repair 101

Some people have written to me, both here and on YouTube asking me for help on refrigerator problems other than those caused by ice buildup, which can't be solved by defrosting. And I'm perfectly willing to offer my opinion as to possible solutions.

But I want to make it clear that I'm an amateur scientist, and a professional computer software engineer, but am NOT a professional refrigerator technician. I do not claim to be an expert in appliance repair. Hah! That much should be obvious: I recently bought a GE refrigerator! How stupid is that?

I am, however, very handy with tools other than hairdryers, because I have been learning to fix broken stuff since I was a kid. I've learned a lot by fixing things myself, and so can you. You just need to try!

As long as you don't electrocute yourself, the worst that can happen if you try to fix your fridge yourself and fail, is that you'll have to hand the "professional" repair person a bag containing all the parts you removed. More likely, though, you CAN fix (most problems) for something like $50 instead of $500.

So, where do you start?

First, check out the 'support' sections of the web site for the manufacturer of your particular appliance. Look for web sites that sell parts. A good example is GE Appliance Parts, which has a search box at the bottom of the page. Enter the model number of your GE fridge, and it will jump to a goldmine of information, such as parts diagrams and part numbers for every single part of your GE fridge. The diagrams can give you a good idea of how things are put together, what screws you'll need to remove to replace a faulty component, and whether it's reasonable to repair it yourself. If so, shop around for the part/s.

If you don't already have them, you'll need to buy a few simple, inexpensive hand tools. You'll be able to tell from the parts diagram what tools you'll need. Generally, it's nothing more than various sizes and types of screwdrivers, hex drivers and/or socket wrenches. These can be had fairly cheaply, so please DON'T USE PLIERS, unless you are desperate: Pliers can inflict damage that really complicates a repair.

Then, go for it! You can do it. :-)

(Unless your name is Susan Steinberg; in which case you need to put the screwdriver down, before you hurt somebody!)

What kind of bird bird sings in the middle of the night?

2010-04-08T00:36:00.000-07:00

I'm not a bird expert.   In fact, all I really know about birds, is that many are delicious when properly prepared. They taste like chicken.

But if you can't sleep because some crazy bird is singing his brains out in the middle of the night, I may be able to help.

Does your bird sound like this? If so, then your unwanted songster is a male Northern Mockingbird, advertising for a mate.

Mockingbirds have their own song, but often mimic, or "mock" (hence the name), the song of other birds; or even the sound a barking dog or car alarm!   But according to the bird experts, once the male Mockingbird finds a mate, he'll shut up.   How long does that take? Experts say, usually no more than three weeks. Usually.

The bad news is --- what, you thought "three weeks" was the bad news? --- sometimes the bachelor-bird isn’t a good dancer, and doesn't have a really rad car. In that case, your Mockingbird could be single — and singing — for a long time.   God forbid he's a "computer programmer mockingbird". If so, you may as well just move.

But there is a simple solution. And it doesn't involve firearms. You just need to convince the bird that he has competition, and that YOU are the biggest, baddest male mockingbird in town! Do that, and he’ll pack up and move elsewhere. At least, that’s what’s happened every time I’ve had to do play this trick on my "Southern Californian", Northern Mockingbirds.

Now, don't worry. You don’t need to flap around while wearing a bird-suit.   I mean, you certainly can, but it isn't required.

You just need to make a recording of the bird singing, maybe five or ten minutes worth. Try to get close enough to get a reasonably good recording of the bird, with not too much wind or traffic noise. Then, you just play the bird's song back to him, LOUDLY.   Play it at least as loud as he is, in a continuous loop. Don't worry about your neighbors complaining. They'll think it’s the damn bird. Which it is, actually.

Now when you first start playing back the recording, the mockingbird will get quiet for a few moments. But if it's working, he'll get even louder! . He’ll start SCREAMING his song, trying to intimidate you. Battle of the bird-bands, so to speak.

But your recording doesn’t get intimidated. It ever gets tired. And it never ever backs down.   He'll soon realize that YOU own these trees, and move on; start annoying the neighbors down the block.

Hopefully though, your neighbors won’t use the same trick; or you may be in for a badminton game, with a REAL “birdie”!

In that case, I suggest firearms. ;-)