I'm done with AVG...
After years of trusting AVG for virus protection on numerous pc's, it's time to part ways. The good people at AVG have made the unfortunate move of reverting to "nagware" to promote their updates. And with out of the blue pop-ups appearing from 2 to 5 times a week nagging me to upgrade, some research was in order. There seems no easy way to block the annoyance, which AVG said in July would last only a month. Ratings for free virus software put ANTIVIR at #1. Unfortunately, it too has pop-up nagware (and very slow update servers). Rating #2 is AVAST, which runs well on my test system so far. AVG comes in at #3 by the way, so another good reason for AVG users to review your virus protection. More to come.

The world is a beautiful place...
Achray campground, located on the east side of Algonquin Park, is a 45km drive from the Sand Lake gate, through the deep woods. It's remote location and quiet atmosphere provides almost an interior camping experience, with the comforts of a drive in campgroung.

Ah, the joys of late season golf in Ontario. With a near-freekish Sunday afternoon of 17 deg (there was a foot of snow on the ground this time last year), not only did I toss the jacket it the bush, after a few holes I peeled off the undershirt and played in my golf shirt. Only wish I had shorts on!

Tapper house goes wireless...
After much research, consideration, and the purchase of an ipod Touch, I have installed a D-Link DIR-615 wireless router, thus turning the Tapper household into a "Hotspot", sort of. After removing the ZoneAlarm firewall software, installation was almost easy. Although I'll never be thrilled with broadcasting our DSL internet access across the neighborhood, it is very cool to see what portable devices can do with WI-FI.

Humans!...
Love em or hate em, seems they're hell bent on stinking up the joint. Here.

Quite by accident I discovered that NASA tv was available on our digital cable last week, on a trial basis. From watching for years the internet version, to have the video on tv was like a present. What a thrill to watch Friday evening's launch! In our area, Rogers cable has it on channel 254. Check it out, while there's lots going on right now.

Passwords are a pain in the ass...More...
Not only is it important to change them up, but to make them complicated as well. Today's computers are powerful enough to make thousands of password attempts (read "guesses") very quickly in an effort to gain access to an online account. Think your passwords are clever and hard to guess? Test them out here.

My lovely new blown glass humming bird feeder I got for fathers' day comes with a note on the box: For outdoor use only.

Tearing it up in the quad..
Hopefully not, a tear in an inflated pylon is a 2 second penalty in the Red Bull Air Races. Race #3 (there are only 6 races each year in this one of a kind event) was held in Windsor, Ontario. The piloting was simply incredible: some 350 km/hr thru three story high pylons over water using a high performance prop plane. Go here for a nice video. If you weren't at the 2009 Windsor air race, you're stupid.

Canada: our misdirected country...
When I was a grade school kid in the 1970's we learned about CANDU nuclear reactors. That our country created a state of the art technology, respected around the world. Today the world looks at our broken and neglected isotope reactor. Today our federal government wants to sell our once proud Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd (AECL). Reminds me of a little airplane we let die called the Arrow. Oh yeah, the world famous CANADARM on board the ISS and every space shuttle - lets sell that off too.
While we're at it City of Kitchener, let's sell off a bunch of public park space. Sadly, the lack of visionaries in Canadian public officials continues.

Deconstruction of Shuttle Launch Pad 39B Begins...
On May 31/09 Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida was handed over from the Space Shuttle Program to the Constellation Program. Dismantling is proceeding, with the lightning tower and gaseous oxygen vent hood (the "beanie cap") and arm already removed. The 13-foot wide hood (and 80 foot arm) was used to prevent ice from forming at the top of the shuttle's external fuel tank before launch. I'm such a huge fan of the shuttles, it's like loosing an old friend, to see them go. Photos.

So here I am driving in Daytona...
Minding my own business at an intersection, when what goes flying by? Right there in front of me I saw the space shuttle flying across the sky on top of a NASA 747, reports George Fetter of Daytona Beach. "I'm just glad I had my trusty Nikon D50 sitting on my passenger seat!" His shot caught the piggy-backed spaceship emerging from behind a green light.
Photo credit: George Fetter

And then there were six...
Congratulations ISS for establishing the first six-person long-term crew. The arrival of the soyuz spacecraft on May 29/09, including Canadian Robert Thirsk, the first Canadian to crew ISS long-term, brings the Expedition crew to six members for the first time. Made possible by the highly touted pee-drinking machine.

Bigger boobs? Rock hard rod? Get your Curvemaster here!

More Workers Outsourcing Own Jobs Overseas...here.

Recent world record model rocket launch...here.

Religion, according to George Carlin...here.

The Knobs at Golf North are at it again...
Remember when the first round of golf was free when you bought a players card? Gone. Weekend discounts are now a token 10 percent. We got dinged full prime rates to play spring golf on still sleeping grass. Oh, and to play, you're asked for your name, address, telephone number, email address, wife's bra size (ok, not that one). Tell them: "In this day and age of identity fraud, I am not giving you my personal information. I'm here as a paying customer to play golf. And if this is a "no cash zone", go fuck yourself."

Speaking of Knobs...
Check out this interview with Billy Bob Thornton by Jian Ghomeshi of CBC's radio show Q here. You want gravy Billy Bob? I gots your gravy hangin boy! Hats of to Jian. I would have told ol Billy to honk on Bobo.

That Can't Be Right...
George Bush visits Calgary to give a speech at a closed $400/plate luncheon. Now let's see, who can we get this year - How about George Bush! Jesus, what were they thinking? Who would go listen to this criminal? Interviewees after the event included a Tory MP, an Alberta pipeline company exec, and a lawyer. Enough said. Remember, Charles Manson has his followers too.

Energy Saver Light Bulbs update...
I first saw the mini-fluorescent light bulbs in the resorts of Cuba, years before they were available here. As soon as they were available at home I began filling our house with them. Their expensive price was justifiable by the energy savings and the 7-year guaranteed life of the bulb. However, I've been finding that these lights are failing way before they are supposed to. I love the guarantee stating return the bulb with proof of purchase. Well, silly me, I don't have a file folder full of light bulb receipts, cross-coded with the installation dates for every fucking light bulb in the house. I have started to write the date of install on the bulb base, to see if my suspicions are valid.
Having returned from a lovely trip to the Caribbean last winter, I noticed that most of the lighting at the resort was conventional light bulbs, with only the odd mini-f here and there. Interesting.

Kennedy Space Center...
Stitched panoramic photo of the vehicle assembly building framed by shuttle launch pads A and B.

Goodbye CKNX...
Isn't it funny the things that stay vivid from one's childhood memories. We would occasionally visit our uncle Gus' cottage at Lake Dalrymple during the summer. This was thousands of miles away to us, actually just outside of Orillia. Some nights we would gather around the old tv with the rabbit ears to watch one of the only stations to come in, CKNX out of Wingham. Wow, we are far away. Wingham must be up in the far north somewhere. We don't get this channel back home. Then, as now, it was a campy, rural Ontario station full of old-time shows. It was with great sadness that I ready that CTV is shutting the station down.

The Jackowski's tell all

Vinyl record cleaning fluid...
Make your own by mixing 1 part rubbing alcohol (72%) with 8 parts distilled water. Be sure to save your old cleaner dropper bottle for reuse. Thanks Dean.

Upcoming Stuff...
Leonid meteor shower peak - November 17/09, 4am EST
Kitchener Record & CD Show - November 22/09, Holiday Inn Fairway Rd.

Free websurfing protection tools......
After years of use, I had to bid farewell to AdAware. The Aniversary Edition wouldn't run on my system worth a darn. Updates stopped working, speed sluggish, very fat. Good luck Lavasoft, hope to see you again soon.
I'm currently testing Superaintispyware as an inactive scanner.
Highly recommended free software to combat viruses and spyware. Don't even think about web surfing without this free stuff.
Virus protection. --WinPatrol. --Spybot. --SpywareBlaster.

...that water has been found on the Moon?

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	NEXT TARGET SHUTTLE LAUNCH
	NOVEMBER 16, 2009 NEXT SOYUZ TARGET LAUNCH DECEMBER 21, 2009