3/1     http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060302/ap_on_fe_st/mcdonald_s_wedding
        Couples get married under the arches of... McDonalds. "Esteppe said
        she couldn't imagine a more romantic spot for their wedding. The
        couple walked down a white aisle laid on the restaurant's floor and
        had a traditional ceremony, not far from the counter."
        I bet they're Republicans.
        \_ Yes, as we all know Republicans are poor and into crappy
           food.

3/1     http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060301/ap_on_fe_st/china_spitting_crackdown
        Beijing is launching a campaign to stamp out widespread public
        spitting in an effort to clean up its image for the 2008 Olympics.
        It also promised to allow spitting after the Olympics is over.

3/2     Nancy Grace is the new James Frey
        http://www.observer.com/20060306/20060306_Rebecca_Dana_pageone_nytv.asp

3/2     You think you have a squirrel problem?
        http://www.geekbase.org/squirrelproblem  -John
        \_ that ain't no squirrel.
           \_ That's no moon.
              \_ We got Death Star!

3/2     LDAP help: I am trying to dump the userPassword from an ldap database
        with ldapsearch but it is coming out base64 encoded:
        userPassword:: e2NyeXB0fWhhKllueGJrSXhrR2M=
        Is there a shell tool to decode this ... I want to avoid re-writing
        the whole thing in perl (I'm not that familar with LDAP or encodings
        and this isn't important enough to spend a lot of time on ... but I've
        answered a lot of motd questions in my areas of expertise so hoping
        somebody can return the favor.)
        \_ If you've got OpenSSL installed:
        \_ If you have OpenSSL installed:
                $ echo '[passwd]' | openssl base64 -d
           If you've got perl and Base64.pm installed:
           If you have perl and Base64.pm installed:
                $ perl -e 'use MIME::Base64; print decode_base64($ARGV[0])' [passwd]
           Some versions of uudecode also support base64 decoding:
                $ echo '[passwd]' | uudecode -rm
        \- I have to do this once in a blue moon and use the emacs base64*
           functions. Wont work on shell stream but YMMV.
           \_ These answers are great!  Feel the love.

3/2     For those interested in the new x86 Mac Mini, some more info:
        1. The x86 CPU is on a socket, so you might be able to
           upgrade in the future:
           http://www.reezle.com/imgs/reezle-100001-5410-1280.jpg
        2. Here is some xbench info for the core duo mac mini v.
           the old 1.5GHz PPC mini:
           http://db.xbench.com/merge.xhtml?doc1=158732&doc2=146457

3/2     very bizarre pass login behavior on soda ... I am able to login
        using an old password, and variations of that password ... anyone
        ever heard of this behavior before? I emailed root ... is anyone
        checking that now????

3/3     If you didn't take CS or EE, what would have been your 2nd choice
        in major?
        \_ probably business administration. Lots of hot chicks. More party.
           More fun. More interactions. More opportunities to learn
           social skills necessary later in life, in the real world.
           \_ If you failed to learn social skills in CS, I don't see how the
              BizAdd environment would be more amenable to learning them.
              -dans
              \_ The CS env was definitely more amenable to learning UNIX
                 and C/Java coding than BizAdd, but I'm not sure if the reverse
                 is true. If you learned all the social graces and had a blast
                 in EE/CS, more power to you. -pp
                 \_ Yeah, this was kind of my point.  BizAdd isn't going to
                    teach you social skills.  You learn social skills by
                    putting yourself into social situations, and BizAdd isn't
                    necessarily going to give you more of those. -dans
                    \_ I think bus admin majors do learn more social skills.
                       There is more interaction and discussion in class
                       with people who have those skills. CS majors
                       socialize in the Labs, but it is the blind leading
                       the blind. Also, CS/engineering/science is so
                       demanding that there's little time to socialize
                       outside of class. The bus admin folks tend to party
                       more because they have the time to do so.
                       \_ I'm doubtful that, if one is a poorly socialized
                          geek when one enters university, one is likely to
                          learn better social skills from class discussions in
                          any discipline.  You probably had to take at least
                          one English class with a discussion component.  Do
                          you feel that your social skills improved as a
                          result?  I agree that CS/engineering/science are
                          demanding, but I had a rich social life while
                          pursuing a CS major.  I think it's more a question
                          of priorities.  Having a life was important to me so
                          I made it a priority.  I guess I'm just doubtful of
                          your assertion that BizAd classes teach social
                          skills, or that BizAd majors are somehow more
                          socially gifted than CS majors, and, even if that is
                          the case, that this would rub off on a typical geek.
                          Also, I should note that almost all the people I
                          know who are throwing parties (i.e. raves, club
                          nights, etc.) post-college are geeks. -dans
                          \_ Geeks throw parties, too, of course. That's
                             beside the point. Who is learning more about
                             social interactions? An EE at home with his
                             breadboard at night and a class full of nerdy
                             guys during the day or a Spanish or Theater
                             major? My roommate majored in Spanish and
                             French and knew a lot of people from the
                             in-class interaction. It's not quite the same
                             as being in a Chem Lab with someone. As to
                             whether it would 'rub off' on a geek, I think
                             it does to some extent. Imagine being shy and
                             being surrounded by introverts. Now imagine being
                             surrounded by friendly, outgoing people. Which
                             one is going to do more to help you get out of
                             your shell?
                             \_ True to an extent, but I dispute that:
                                a) The majority of engineers are introverts
                                b) Even if I grant that the majority of BizAd
                                   majors are extroverts, I doubt they are
                                   necessarily friendly-- the business
                                   disciplines tend to be highly cutthroat.
                                c) I know many introverts who completely close
                                   off in a room full of extroverts.
                                -dans
        \_ English.  More time to hack. -dans
           \_ No doubt. Just remember, 2 papers, midterm, and final per class.
              25+ pages not uncommon. Still, left me with plenty of time to
              muck about down in the WEB. --erikred
        \_ Physics, but it was harder. -emarkp
           \_ 2ded, if I was better at math I would have been a Physics major.
           \_ I did physics, learned a ton, and incorporated programming into
              my projects where possible/sane. -!pp
        \_ History. Pretty much like English, but you learn more, er, history,
           which is kind of fun to know. Ok either that or premed.
           Math or Physics is the logical replacement for CS or EE, but... hm.
        \_ psychology.

3/2     German John, motd is boring. Please post funny Eurotrash jokes. Heil.

3/2     Has anyone seen this?  Should make a good firewall appliance.
        http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS3880195342.html
        \_ With only one nic?  I suppose you could use the USB..
           Wonder how M0n0wall would do on this..
           \_ I could ask Manuel (the guy who put M0n0wall together) if you're
              interested--we have him on retainer on one of my projects. -John
              \_ More "curious" than "interested"
        \_ not bad for 30 euros...  It's a decent firewall appliance, if
           your upstream filters rfc1918.

3/1     The glass door in my shower has a lot of time hardened soap scum &
        hard water spots. I've tried using Tilex Soap Scum, 409, alcohol,
        and Windex but the damn stubborn spots wouldn't come off. What's
        the best way to get rid of them?
        \_ Stop using bar soap and use the liquid stuff. Trust me, this
           works. But I agree with CLR advice below for getting rid of it.
           \_ I DO use liquid soap and I still get a lot of hard water spots
        \_ a heavy brick
        \_ Search for something called C.L.R. (I think it stands for
           Calcium, Lime, & Rust).
           \_ This works, but you can also try white vinegar.
        \_ It's probably Lime.  Try Lime-a-way
        \_ Try mixing bleach with ammonia.  Just kidding! :P

3/2     http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060302/ap_on_re_us/helpful_babies
        Altruism start as early as 18 months.
        \_ then stops as early as 18 years when you become a conservative
           like GWB.
           \_ Haw haw haw!
              \_ I'm an independent, and if I understand the conservative
                 from an independent's perspective, they are:
                 *pro lower tax-- "I don't want to pay tax to fund programs
                        that I personally don't need, like welfare"
                 *pro family value-- "Who needs the government when you
                        can get support from your family"
                 *pro self-reliance-- "God helps those who help themselves"
                 *pro small government-- "If you help yourself you don't
                        need to leech off from the government"
                 *pro free market-- "success is measured by money and
                        efficiency"
                 I'm sorry my conservative friend, but none of the above
                 values stem from altruism. That's why I'll never vote
                 for a conservative candidate. I have similar gripes about
                 anal ass loving liberals but we can save that for another
                 discussion.
                 \_ You got the previous poster wrong.  GWB is NOT a
                    conservative.  Just look at how the idiot is spending
                    money like a drunken sailor.  We'll be in debt for
                    generations thanks to GWB.  GWB, is, pure and simple,
                    a crony-rewarding dumbass frat-boy criminal who has
                    used the power and treasure of the US to conduct
                    personal and family vendettas, and enriched his
                    cronies in the process.
                    \_ In other words, unfortunately he's a typical
                       national-level politician.
                       \_ In other words, the people really don't want a
                          "real" conservative government.  Didn't we already
                          find this out in the Reagan years?

3/2     poll. Iraq Civil War will be:
        prevented:
        break out soon:
        going on right now:

3/2     So much for federalism.
        http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060302/ap_on_he_me/food_warnings
        \_ 1) federalism is LONG dead (in these united states)
           2) Whatever the possibly undesirable outcomes of such legislation,
              the concept of unified food labeling is completely consistent
              with the principles of Federalism and in particular with the
              interstate commerce clause of our constitution.  It boggles
              my mind, that in a time in which that clause is used to
              justify (successfully, btw, see the CA marijuana case) leg.
              regarding things that aren't even commerce, let alone inter-
              state commerce, that you would point to the above link as
              some sort of watershed legislation signifying the end of Fed.ism
              I suspect (just a guess, and i don't know who you are since you
              didn't sign, so don't get all offended) that you are just some
              dumb leftist who doesn't have the first clue about federalism
              (and probably doesn't care) but (mistakenly) thinks he has caught
              his "opponents"(a larger mistake I won't go into), in some sort
              of a hypocrisy/contradiction. -crebbs
              some sort of watershed legislation signifying the end of
              Federalism. -crebbs
        \_ "Consumers across the country deserve a single set of science-based
           food warning requirements, not the confusing patchwork that we have
           today," said Rep. Marsha Blackburn (news, bio, voting record),
           R-Tenn.
           I demand faith-based food warning requirements!
           \_ According to the bible, a believer can drink any poison
              and survive, so why do we need food warnings at all? Note
              I'm getting this from a recent Boston Legal episode, but
              I'm sure some Christian can give the reference.
              \_ you are right, see Psalm 91:11,12 - (1)
                 but then you are also wrong, see Deuteronomy 6:13 - (2)
                 but then you are also wrong, see Deuteronomy 6:16 - (2)
                 and then there is Matthew 4 where satan uses (1) and
                 Jesus uses (2) in reply.
                 oh wait, u are just trolling.  doh!
                 \_ The bible contradicts itself? You're shattering my
                    world!
                 \_ Psalm isn't the (very general, directly countered in
                    Matthew 4) reference they were talking about; they were
                    talking about Matthew 16:18.
                    talking about Mark 16:18.
                    \_ Deuteronomy 6:13 applies to Mark 16:18 too.  It's
                    \_ Deuteronomy 6:16  applies to Mark 16:18 too.  It's
                       the same idea.
                       \_ "Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God, and serve him,
                          and shalt swear by his name."  -- Deut 6:13
                          ooooooook...
                       (note: verse corrected from 6:13 to 6:16. thanks!)
                          \_ My bad.  It's Deut 6:16.
              \_ To think I wasted years of my life building up an immunity
                 to iocane powder when all I needed to do was believe.
                 -westley
           \_ Do you really think that we would be better off leaving all
              food labeling to the states? The FDA std labeling require-
              ments for many types of foods are a net positive for consu-
              mers in terms of consistency and safety. You can go to any
              store in any state in the union and read the label and know
              what you are getting. That is a good thing in my book.
              I agree that taking away the ability of the states to add
              extra warnings could be a bad thing, but if the federal stds
              are better than the state stds, then maybe it would be okay.
              \_ If you read the article, this isn't about "better federal
                 in place of"; it's about states adding extra, and mfrs.
                 complaining b/c of cost.
                 \_ I read the article (hence, the "I agree, ..."). I was
                    suggesting that in this case abs. federalism would not
                    be a good thing. I have not read the bill, but if the
                    stds it required were more than anything the states
                    currently required (unlikely) it could be a good thing
                    as well.
                    \- The POWER of CAROLENE PRODUCTS

3/2     I'm a horny guy and I have an observation to report. I'm wondering
        if you guys noticed something similar. When I was in HS many
        georgeous women with nice curves got pretty fat in college. On the
        other hand many chop-stick figured girls got super hot. Now I'm
        in my mid 30s and still horny, I'm noticing that many georgeous women
        with nice curves (big boobs and nice round butt) I met in college are
        now ... chunky, while many other super skinny girls are now georgeous
        and have nice figures. Has anyone else observed this phenomenon?
        \_ I have grown to love my double F size breasts.  Although I was the
           target of unwanted attention at school, I started wearing low cut
           tops to spite my tormenters.  As a performing artist and
           actor, I have incorporated the size of my breasts into my show
           and I them as an asset to my self expression.
        \_ Ever since I developed these 36JJ breasts I haven't been
           able to see my shoes!
        \_ *Yawn.* I know it's been a boring Thursday afternoon, but surely
           we can do better than this.
           \_ How well do you really expect a horny old fob to do?
        \_ So your observation is that skinny girls make skinny women and
           fat girls make fat women?  Deep.
           \_ No stupid, work on your reading comprehension! His point is that
              some flowers blossom early and some flowers blossom late, but
              eventually they all wither away.
              \_ Very nice way of putting it.
           \_ No, his observation is that women get fat over time. Usually,
              so do men. When I went to my 10 year high school reunion
              there were more than a few girls who were beanpoles in high
              school who really filled out to have nice figures. I imagine
              that by my 30 year reunion most of them will be fat. The
              girls who had nice figures when younger were already fat, or
              were well on their way. There are exceptions, of course.
              I guess this means that every woman has her period of peak
              attractiveness and it's not necessarily when she is youngest.
              The moral: man or woman, you'd better work out when you get
              older if you want to stay looking good.
        \_ What about the fat chick who got hot later in life? Monica from
           friends is a fake example of this, but it's been known to happen.
           Speed and coke in a soriority seem to help.
           \_ It can happen, but she's always just a binge away from
              becoming tubby again. I knew a really hot blonde once who
              was a fat brunette in a previous life. She had to work out
              religiously and starve herself to maintain that appearance.
              I imagine that eventually she married, had a kid, and
              returned to a lard-like state. It's just too much work. Better
              was for her to be who she was and find a guy who liked her
              that way. Instead, her hubby is probably going to cheat on
              her once she's no longer a hot blonde. It's sad, really.
              \_ I recommend not interacting with chubby people.  That
                 way you really dont think about these things.  The only fat
                 people in my life are one giant co-worker, a relative and
                 two girls who are friends of friends.
        \_ As someone who knows both males and females who struggled with
           weight, body-image, and eating disorders, I find many comments on
           this thread to be offensive, and think the commenters who made them
           are behaving like assholes.  That said, I'll respect your right to
           say stupid, nasty things, you respect my right to call you on it.
           Fuck you assholes.  I wouldn't wish an eating disorder on anyone,
           but if you ever gain personal experience with the phenomenon, I
           hope your attitudes change. -dans

3/2     sham acupuncture is as effective as traditional chinese acupuncture
        http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060302/hl_nm/acupuncture_dc
        hahahaha that is hilarious.
        \- Sham acupuncture: Ancient Chinese Secret.

3/2     http://www.cnn.com/2006/EDUCATION/03/02/homeschool.growth.reut
        Home Schooling more and more popular in the US. Many of the parents
        do so to teach diversity in politics, religion, moral/ethics,
        family values, and such. Go conservative America!
        \_ I'm a liberal, and I'm tempted to do it, because without vouchers
           the only school I could afford to send my child to (without moving
           to a different neighborhood) is the local crapshack Union-run moron
           factory.
                \- or you could SUE and send your kid to school in Switzerland!
           \_ down with lazy teacher's unions!
              \_ Yes! down with the lazy and corrupt union.
                \_ yes! (except it's not just the teacher's union that's lazy)
                    \_ why do you guys HATE the CHILDREN ?

3/2     poll. Yermom's War on Herpes will be:
        prevented:
        break out soon:
        going on right now:

3/2     How is an Opteron different from an Athlon64?
        \_ Most Opterons require registered DIMM (940pin) and most
           have 3 HT links.  1xx series only have 1 usable one, though.
           There're some 939pin Opterons, which are basically identical
           to Athlon 64.  All Athlon 64s have 1 HT link only and use
           unbuffered DIMMs.  Internally, they're identical other than
           cache size and missing HT link logic.  DRAM controller is
           actually the same, but depending on which pads get routed to
           the pins, it turns into A64 or Opteron.  -- AMD employee.
        \_ one has more vowel than the other
           \_ Thanks!  Can you answer one more question though?  I thought
              the 939 pin opterons (165,170,175) had 3 HT links (not that
              it matters) and the only difference between those and 940 pins
              was the pin count and memory required?  Is there any difference
              between any of 165,170,175 and the same speed/cache X2? -!op
              \_ There is practically no difference between 939pin
                 Opteron and 939pin A64.  Apparently, MANIDs are
                 different, though, which some BIOS may not like.  I
                 believe Opteron 939pin is multiplier unlocked, but
                 don't quote me on that.  FX parts are all multiplier
                 unlocked.  All 939pin parts have only 1 HT link, so
                 939pin Opterons can only be used on 1 socket systems.
                 Also, in case anybody cares, the biggest win for 939pin
                 is that vendors can build cheap 4-layer motherboards for
                 them.  940pin requires more layers.  Layers on motherboard
                 are relatively expensive.  Also, unbuffered DIMMs are
                 cheaper.  All K8 is capable of supporting ECC memory, but
                 not many BIOS in the consumer boards enable it.
                 \_ I've seen references to layer counts in motherboards at
                    review sites and all they ever said was "more is better!".
                    What's it really mean?  Thanks again.
                    \_ This is pretty simple.  Think all those tightly
                       packed pins.  Now, you need to route them a
                       certain way without them colliding.  Obviously,
                       if they collide, that's an electrical short.  Any
                       short you didn't intend is bad.  There are only
                       so many ways to route them in our 3-dimensional
                       world.  In fact, it's more like 2-dimension +
                       however many layers you add.  More layer really
                       shouldn't imply better quality other than the
                       fact that you can isolate the power and ground
                       planes better.  You can also route things in
                       such ways to reduce noise (add more inductive
                       loops and keep certain signals away from each
                       other).  If you're current limited (crazy
                       overclockers and what not), more may be of some
                       use, too.  More layers can also be bad since
                       there will be more points of failures,
                       particularly the layer-to-layer connections.
        \_ http://tinyurl.com/mcgr3 (amd.com)
           Opteron has more HT links (3 v. 1) and more cache than a
           Athlon64.
           \_ I think the above link is dated. The reason I think so is
              that when comparing prices I found the Athlon64 FX60 to
              cost more than the equivalent dual-core Opteron. Why is
              that? Also, along those lines, anyone have links comparing
              the performance of a Opteron 280 to an Opteron 250? They
              are the same clock speed, but the 280 is dual core. Are you
              better off with a 254 (unicore but 20% faster CPU)? This is
              for pure floating point computing, let's say monte carlos
              running threaded.
        \_ You can unscrew an Athlon64!