The Double A Lounge

I give the guy in this article a lot of credit. He took the concept of buckling down to reduce his debt to the max and somehow made it work. I especially liked his statement about the male advantage. Read the article and you will know what he is talking about.

Having worked in tech support and customer service positions for many years, I see articles like this one all the time.

There are a few things that set this one apart though.  First is that this is being written by someone who runs a small software company.  When was the last time you called a company that develops software to get support?  If you have, then like most of us you found what an awful experience it can be and decided never to repeat that experience.  Second is that this isn’t being written by some high-minded columnist or consultant - this was written by an actual software developer.  From my experience, most software developers are wizards with the coding minutiae of their job but have no idea what their customers need or expect.  Third is that he runs a small software company - not some oversized conglomerate.  The practices that he advocates could be considered quite costly at most companies, but he seems more interested in the long term effects than short term fixes.  His company has much more to lose yet he goes way above and beyond what a much larger company would do.  When was the last time you heard of anyone getting a no question’s asked refund of any software?  I wish more people would think along these lines.

You would think that with all the paranoia surrounding identity theft that the issues with Social Security Numbers would not be an issue at all.  This article illustrates that the issue is still at the forefront.  Interesting to note the statement from the Social Security administration about the use of SSN’s and their purpose.  As always, you have to watch your back since even our government can’t do that for you.

Here is a great weekend project for creating your own remote controlled lawnmower.  If you want to see it in action, here is a link to the YouTube video for it.  If you have a really large lawn, I could see this being worth some effort.  It would be great to sit on the porch while you control the mower with all your neighbors watching in envy.

Well I knew something like this would come about eventually.  It appears that despite all the frustrations that air travelers have to deal with, they now have to pay to use electricity while waiting so they can use laptops and such.  Apparently someone else didn’t like that either since they created something called the Air Power Wiki.  It’s a special series of web pages designed to point out good spots at airports where you can power up without having to pay.

I don’t doubt that running an airport can be an expensive.  The utilities alone would be burden enough as you essentially have to have them running all the time.  Is it really fair to saddle air travelers with the burden of paying for electricity while there?  If all someone is going to do is use a laptop or other small electronic device, I don’t see how the small amount of power consumed is going to make all that much difference in the overall costs of electricity there.  They probably get a large discount on their power bill to boot (don’t know that for fact but it would be interesting to find out).

So if they want to charge for electric usage, what’s next in line?  Will I need to feed a $5 bill into the bathroom door so I can relieve myself?  Will I have to swipe my credit card if I want a comfy seat to wait in while my delayed flight makes its way in?  I’m surprised they don’t offer discounts for people willing to stand outside vs. inside.  To me, an airport charging for power use would be like making someone who visits my house doing the same thing.  You treat people like guests, not a burden.

I would be leery of anyone offering to play this game on the street.  Someone actually guessed correctly too!

See if you can keep a straight face the next time you call in a Chinese take out order after listening to this prank.  I think someone could create and maintain a site that specializes in this type of prank and apply it to other stuff like pizza orders, taxi cabs, collection agencies, etc.  Sounds like this order went from sweet and sour chicken to pu pu platter in no time!

When we setup computer desks or anything with tech items, we don’t usually take the time to route wiring and such.  I found a page called Declutter Your Desk that tackles this issue head on.  It may not be the most elegant solution, but he sure did a nice job with it.  Most importantly, he didn’t have to spend a fortune to do it.

Check this page out for a product that is sure to be a blast when taking a bath!   For those who are old enough to remember, it kind of reminds me of this classic horror movie.  I wonder if people come out of the tub with the color of it all over them or not.  Only one way to find out!  Also recommended for scaring the life out of someone as they are taking a shower.

I always knew corporate America would find a way to undermine my citizenship status in this country. Apparently they have decided in their wonderful wisdom (or lack thereof) to grant illegal immigrants in this country the right to have a charge card even without having social security numbers. Read about it here.

I wasn’t aware about that Federal law that Spitzer mentions in this article. Guess if we’re gonna Americanize these people, then might as well do it right by having them run up all sorts of huge credit card bills they will never be able to repay. Apparently we need to take out the word illegal from illegal immigrant.