3/21    http://www.davidappleyard.com/japan/jp10.htm
        "The winter I spent in Seoul was the most comfortable winter of my
        life," reports an English friend. "With life in Korea, as in Japan,
        lived mainly on the floor, the ondol was very cozy, even when it
        was minus 20 degrees outside."
        jrleek, is this true?
        \_ The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.
        \_ Why wouldn't it be?  Even in the US, radiant floor heating is
           generally considered the most comfortable.
        \_ Traditional ondol has one spot that's *really* hot(too
           uncomfortable for my taste) and it gradually cools as further
           from the heat source it gets.  Traditionally, the elders got the
           hotspot.  The bad thing is that most homes with ondol are heated
           by a charcoal like thing, and if there's any crack in the pipe that
           runs under the floor, people can die from carbon monoxide poisoning.
           Carbon monoxide poisoning was actually quite common in the 70s and
           80s.
           \_ You can buy carbon monoxide detectors for about $20.  In
              fact, everyone with a gas heater should consider buying some.
           \_ When were you last in Korea that most homes with ondol were
              heated by charcoal?  That's extremely rare these days, even
              in the countryside. -jrleek
        \_ Sure, heated floors are pretty great.  I think Koreans tend to
           turn it up too high, but that's personal taste.  It's
           pretty efficent too. In modern times it's usually done by
           piping hot water through the floor from the hot water heater.
           This is done in states too, but isn't as common.  It has the
           This is done in the US too, but isn't as common.  It has the
           disadvantage of being really expensive to fix, and only
           lasting about 30 years.  This is ok in Korea as they tear
           everything down within 30 years anyhow. -jrleek
           \_ On a moderately-related note, this is also done for driveways
              and walkways in cold places. Several Tahoe-area ski resorts
              have heated pavement in one place or another. I always wonder
              what the energy and maintenence costs for something like this
              are.
              \_ I suspect the answer is "cheaper than getting them cleared
                 with a snowplow, snowblower, or shovel frequently enough to
                 keep them useable."
        \_ here is a crazy idea:
           - implement "wet installation" for the pipes, burry them in a
             relatively large concrete slap.
           - route those pipe to Solar panels, using Sun to heat the water
           - use concrete floor's heat capacity to store the heat
           this way, one can have a relatively warm house in the evenings
           without flip the heater on, no?
        \_ i'll ondol YOUR floor
           \_ eww.  Well at least let me put down some newspaper first.

3/22    http://www.park.nl/park_cms/public/index.php?thisarticle=118
        Listen to Beethoven's 9th symphony stretched over 24 hours.
        \_ i'll stretch YOUR symphony

3/21    Chicks are cuter in Red States
        http://tinyurl.com/ealpu
        \_ you call that cute?
           \_ She's not exactly a butter face, but her face is not her
              strong suit. She has some other desirable qualities.
              \_ I dunno, looks like a lot of butter there.  the rest
                 of her isn't any better.
                 \_ Butter face has nothing to do with butter, although you
                    are perfectly correct regardless.  -John
           \_ I concur.  For some random "cute chick" post, that is pretty
              bad.  All she has going for her are breasts, and they aren't
              really special in any way except by being big.
              \_ Well, I think we've established that "big" is all that motd
                 boob guy really cares about.  --motd boob guy #1 fan
        \_ Regardless of the picture above, which isn't cute at all, one of
           the best times I ever had with a girl was with a blonde-haired,
           blue-eyed Republican real estate bimbo from Houston.  Craaaaazy in
           the sack, and she voted for Bush.  She also smelled much nicer than
           your typical Mission District chick.  --liberal Bay Area guy
           \_ Are the guy who was on about how a blonde Texas Bushie was the
              best anal you've ever had?
           \_ Friends don't let friends visit Houston.
           \_ Ah, the sweet smell of hypocrisy.
              \_ Her pussy smelled like roses, not hypocrisy.
                 \_ What did you have to do to get her in the sack?
                    \_ Nothing fancy.  Some people are open minded enough to
                       appreciate people that don't hold the same views as
                       themselves.
           \_ What's your point?  That hot sex is not reserved for people at
              one end of the political spectrum?  That blonde Republican
              bimbos do it better?  If it's the former, I'd say duh.  If it's
              the latter, I'd say take Rhetoric 1A and see if you'd still say
              that. -dans
        \_ She's an example of what some mag (Esquire I think) once referred
           to when describing how the ideals of the American Century, which
           stood for a certain kind of elegance, including in the beauty ideal
           of women, were replaced by what they called "oven stuffers."  This
           is an oven stuffer.  And she'll weigh 350 pounds within two
           years of graduating.  -John
           \_ Probably, but why concentrate on the future? I mean, Marilyn
              Monroe was probably also an 'oven stuffer'.
              \_ Err, no.  Take another look at the Monroe Playboy spread.
           \_ Please define 'oven stuffer'.
              \_ "The New American Beauty: The Oven Stuffer" by Tom Junod,
                 Esquire Dec. 2004.  Essentially, broad-faced, well-fed girls
                 that may be cute-ish, but not very sleek or elegant.  I.e.
                 mo' cushion fo' de pushin'.  I think it's a much better word
                 than "zaftig". -John
        \_ i'll red state YOUR chicks
           \_ I find this repetition very much like Malden number 5

3/21    This was fucking irritating:
        http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/03/22/MNGREHS8KD4.DTL
        \_ Gosh, that's too bad. Here in Texas we don't have that problem.
           \_ What, no fake bomb threats in Texas?
              \_ No meaningful public transportation.
                 \_ The buses in the downtown Austin area didn't seem that
                    bad to me when I was there.
           \_ Yes, but in Texas you can be arrested for being drunk in a bar.
        \_ Things like this make me understand why Singapore allows caning.
        \_ i'll irritate YOUR fucking

3/21    I think it's hilarious the "Human Rights Commission" in
        Aghanistan wants to kill a muslim who converted to
        Christianity. Even more funny is that because he
        converted to Christianity he must be insane and therefore
        that is his only hope for not facing a death sentence.
        \_ The state-sponsored "Afghanistan Independent Human Rights
           Commission," in a country where the constitution is based on Sharia.
        \_ Mission: Accomplished
        \_ Freedom Is On The March
        \_ i'll commission YOUR human rights

3/22    John, did you ever cut your tatamis? Got a picture of your J-style
        tea room?

                                       _,.          ___.    .
     ____        ,._               --=:_ *: ======((|_L]_   \\
   c:____]((=-  :* _:=- - - - -         `'       (__(____)   \\
    / //   ___   `' ,._                                       \\___.
   / //  _/_/_]=== :* _:=--          ,.          ___.        _((|_L]_
 _/ //_.(_(_)(_)..  `'           --=: *: ======((|_L]_     _/(__(\_ _)\_
        \_ i'll tatami YOUR tea room
        \_ I'm not tatami guy--I never got around to buying any.  It's
           sort of an ongoing intention (didn't I ask a question about
           them somewhere in 2002?!?)  -John

                                       _,.          ___.    .
     ____        ,._               --=:_ *: ======((|_L]_   \\
   c:____]((=-  :* _:=- - - - -         `'       (__(____)   \\
    / //   ___   `' ,._                                       \\___.
   / //  _/_/_]=== :* _:=--          ,.          ___.        _((|_L]_
 _/ //_.(_(_)(_)..  `'           --=: *: ======((|_L]_     _/(__(\_ _)\_
/____\_\          `....              `'       (__(____)

        \_ I see the tanks.  What are the other objects on the far left and
           right?  One looks like an artillery piece.  The other looks
           futuristic.
           \_ Release all 'Zig.  -John

3/22    To make a long story short... I have NO idea why one of the tables
        got corrupted (mysql said "This is marked as 'crash', please repair
        this table"). I've run REPAIR TABLE <tables> and now Berkeley MOTD
        is working again. Thanks for the quick notification. FYI I've run
        Berkeley MOTD for a while and this is the first time something like
        this has happened. If you know why and how to fix it please email
        me. Thanks guys                                 -kchang
        \_ Just curious, why do you bother or care?
           \_ someone important asked me to do it.
        \_ i'll repair YOUR table
        \_ Are you using MyISAM (default) or InnoDB tables?  MyISAM tables can
           and do corrupt if you hit mysql hard enough.  In theory, InnoDB
           tables should be immune from this.  Obviously switching to a
           different RDBMS is not a decision to take lightly, but, as a worst
           case scenario, consider switching to postgres, which is definitely
           more robust than mysql. -dans

3/22    ~danh/local/bin/naim if you need a command line AOL AIM client
        \_ ...that logs your every word and stalks your female buddies.
           \_ just looking out for you... in case you're a terrorist. :)
           \_ just looking out for you... in case your a terrorist. :)
           \_ you mean guy buddies? thought danh was gay
        \_ i'll command YOUR line

3/22    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060322/ap_on_bi_ge/fuel_economy
        Bush works hard to improve fuel economy. Here's a better idea
        for you out-of-touch politicians. Instead of building endless
        unplanned suburbs, how about encouraging developers to build
        sustainable and more efficient cities that require less driving?
        It'll drastically cut down on fuel consumption and other energy costs.
        \_ Americans value freedom.
           \_ the only reason why you have this "freedom" is because
              government is paying for the road.
           \_ So you equate sitting in a metal box for many hours a week
              with freedom.  You, sir, are a fucking moron.
              \_ You aren't forced to drive everywhere.  Change your career and
                 life style so you don't have to.  Every decision and life
                 style choice has plusses and minuses.  Pick the set that makes
                 you happiest.
                 \_ I haven chosen.  I don't own a car, and I live in one of the
                    very very few places in the U.S. where that doesn't ruin
                     \_ where is that, out of curiosity?
                        \_ Boulder, co.  Buses: amazing, bike trails:amazing
                           \_ indeed a cool place... love the scones from the
                              bakery downtown... best I ever had.
                              \_ Which bakery?  I'm new here, and I like
                                 scones.
                                 \_ I don't remember the name, but it was on
                                    Pearl street, west of the walk-only portion,
                                    on the north side of the street.  Should be
                                    pretty easay to find.  The famous tea house
                                    (in the rough vicinity) was also pretty cool.
                                    \_ looked it up, I think it was Spruce
                                       Confections (767 Pearl St)
                                       \_ Thanks! I'll check it out tonight
                                          or tomorrow.
                    my life.  I intend to vote with my feet on this issue and
                    never live in a shithole like L.A., Houston, or Phoenix.
                    My point is that a life that includes sitting in a metal
                    box for several hours by yourself and not getting paid for
                    it involves less *freedom* than one where you're not.
                    I'm pretty sure I value freedom a lot more than the average
                    SUV driving McHouse dweller on just about every possible
                    axis on which freedom can be defined.
                    \_ Can all of the service workers the city requires afford
                       to live in this efficient and eco-friendly city of yours?
                       \_  In the city I just left? Yes.  In the city I'm in
                           now, rents are still way lower than the sprawling
                           Bay Area.   I don't think your sprawl is the product
                           of the free market anyway--it's just another form
                           of socialism: corporate socialism.  You're probably
                           from LA like most of the rightwing assholes on the
                           motd, so it's difficult for you to understand that
                           people don't have to live that way, but there are
                           plenty of livable non-car cities with over a million
                           people, with a quarter million people, with 80,000
                           poeple, 25,000 people, and less than a thousand.
                           It's not some crazy utopia--it's your world that's
                           a crazy dystopia, and you're just too brainwashed
                           to see it.
                           \_ Hear hear! These car drivin suburbanites
                              refuse to admit how much urbanites subsidize
                              their wasteful and selfish lifestyle. I for
                              one am sick and tired of paying high taxes
                              and other increased costs (like higher utility
                              costs) just so they can live in their McMansions.
                              \_ Well, then we agree.  I have no problem with
                                 these morons going out in the desert and
                                 building sprawl if they want to pay for it and
                                 actually live up to their free market rhetoric.
                                 But, as with most people who carp the loudest
                                 about the "free market", the suburbanites are
                                 really statists.  The exception is when their
                                 pollution infriges on my right to breathe
                                 without getting asthma at a young age, which
                                 I consider to be a basic right.
                                 \_ Our great Lord Bush disagrees with you.
                                    He recommends you drive an SUV and live in
                                    a nice mansion in Texas.
                            \_ http://csua.org/u/fbg is funny
                               The only CA city ranked for walking is... Fremont
                               Aaaaanyway.
                                \_ I didn't have a car for most of my years in
                                   Berkeley and it wasn't a big deal.  Fremont?
                            \_ Which motd rightwingers are from LA?  None
                               of the ones I know are.
        \_ i'll up YOUR mileage

3/22    Say given the ridiculous hypothetical situation where you're the
        advisor of the President of the United States. Say the president
        would do one thing, and just one thing you suggest. What
        would you suggest? Allocate money for alternative fuel research?
        Pull out of Iraq War? Abortion rights? Better interstate mass
        transportation?
        \_ Resign.
        \_ Suicide?
           \_ yes! I vote for this. via drinking himself to death
        \_ Serve the public good.
        \_ Work to eliminate the deficit/debt, no matter how much it hurts.
        \_ Convert to Islam.
           \_ Yeah, wow.  Think of how much his policies would change!  Wait..
              hmm.
        \_ Unite America, with the first task being having transparency
           into the Iraq decision, which starts with clearly admitting error
           and an investigation into how cherry-picking the intelligence led
           him to that decision.
        \_ Allocate $1.17 billion to myself for my consulting fee.
        \_ I'd legalize everything I believe in. Legalized marijuana,
           gay marriage, and abortion rights.
           \_ About the marijuana thing. Would you also legalize other drugs?
              Heroin or cocaine? How about oxycontin etc.? Would marijuana be
              regulated and if so how? How about prescription drugs in general;
              should people have the right to get them if they choose, without
              a prescription? Why or why not?
              \_ All legal, with the only regulation being honest and clear
                 labels with accurate statement of contents.  Selling
                 LSD cut with rat poison or speed, and with no labels
                 denoting how it was cut would be illegal.
              \_ Marijuana, peyote, mescaline, LSD, Ecstasy, and other
                 hallucinogenics to be regulated the same as alcohol and
                 tobacco; heroin, cocaine, and meth to remain illegal; oxy
                 and other potentially habit-forming prescription drugs to
                 remain under prescription. --erikred, !pp
                 \_ why?
                    \_ Why which?
        \_ Send ilyas back to Russia.
        \_ Nuke Switzerland.
        \_ Give jblack a Medal of Freedom.
        \_ Deport williamc to canada for being such a whiner.
        \_ Let amckee be the new POTUS.
        \_ Send John to live in a monastery to cure him of his expensive tastes.
           \_ HAHA this is the BEST entry of all. You win the contest.
           \_ I'll go if they have nice sheets and breakfast until 11.  -John
        \_ i'll hypothetical YOUR situation
        \_ Call liberals what they are - the same people who you want out
           of your bedroom, but you trust controlling your guns.

3/22    George W. Bush
        \_ Katrina
           \_ Disaster
        \_ Enron
        \_ Iraq War
        \_ deficit
        \_ Lied
           \_ People Died
        \_ Clinton!
           \_ Monica!
              \_ Ken!
        \_ Hitler
           \_ Godwin
              \_ Quirk's exception
        \_ i'll george YOUR bush

3/22    i'll verb YOUR noun
        \_ I'll YOUR your YOUR.

3/22    What's a good place to buy tire chains in or near Berkeley?
        \_ any auto store
        \_ Update: I called about 6 places. Only Berkeley Firestone and Autozone
           in Oakland have them for $50 and $60 respectively.

3/22    difference between white box and grey box and black box?
        \_ shades of grey
        \_ i'll black YOUR box
        \_ The opacity of the box.
        \_ Ethnicity and age of the chick it belongs to.
           \_ What ethnicity would "grey" refer to? I guess maybe it's
              a senior citizen's box.
        \_ black box: you do not have knowledge of how something works.
           \_ The input and output are well specified but the implementation
              is abstracted away (you don't care how it's implemented).
           white box: you have knowledge of what is inside.
           \_ Which is stupid nomenclature: the term "black box" is meant
              to mean that you can't see inside it. The opposite should
              really be "clear box" testing (I've sometimes heard it called
              "glass box" testing), but I guess someone just figured that
              the opposite of black is white, so the opposite of black box
              testing must be white box testing. Ok, I'm done.