I think that one of the most useful things the Web can do is to speed up the process
of answering the little questions in life. Ever look for some information when you
know you've seen it somewhere, but you don't remember the details or where or when
you saw it, much less what it was? On occasion you take the time, always too much
time, to track it down. So what about the next person who needs that same bit of
information? From now on, whenever I take far too much time tracking down something
simple, I will put the answer down here in the hopes that the next person looking for
that information will be able to snag it using a Web search engine like
Google
or
AltaVista.
And the next time you spend too much time tracking down something small, just
e-mail
it here and I will post it for the next luckier soul.
More and more, the quickest way
to solve small problems and answer small questions is to check out the Web. With a
little work, we can make the Web a into a really reliable time-saver.
This is page contains
Queries,
Tidbits,
Handy hints,
Quotations,
and
Links on practical matters.
If you have any additions, suggestions or corrections on any of this, please
e-mail
them to me and I will include them here. Most importantly, if you are interested in swapping
links, e-mail your URL to me. I am eager to exchange links with anyone with related
interests.
This spot is reserved to look for information I don't have.
If you know the answer, e-mail me at steve_kemp@unc.edu
and I will post it here under Tidbits (or Quotes, as the case might be.) That
way, the next person won't have to look so hard or so long.
Locating a programmable remote control: What with the vaporization
of DAK and the DAK catalogue,
I am looking for a supplier of programmable remote controls. It's easy to find
pre-programmed universal remotes, but programmable ones are very, very hard to
find. Like so very many other DAK fans, I purchased a VX-6000 Universal remote
controller and have been delighted with it. As it ages, the buttons are getting
unreliable. One of these days its going to give out and I have no idea
of how to get a replacement. Any ideas? (If you have misplaced your copy of the
instruction manual for your VX-6000 Universal remote, click
here to download a new one.)
Update: I am delighted to report that DAK is back! Check the good news by clicking
here.
Source for Damon Runyon quotation: As part of my
policy
of not including quotations without a proper reference, I will not include
the following wonderful piece of advice in the
Quotations
section until I find the source for Damon Runyon's line: "The race is
not always to the swift nor the battle to the strong -- but that's the way to bet."
The Web informs me that the second edition of The New International Dictionary of
Quotations lists this one as being from a collection of Runyon's stories entitled,
More Than Somewhat. This is odd, because the collection is a British reprint
of stories from three previous collections and is not the name of any particular story
included within. Further, a correspondent has checked the book from cover-to-cover
without finding the quotation in question. (Thanks, Danna.)
Our best bet at present is
that the line is not actually
Runyon's,
but is the product of one of the screenwriters
who worked on the movie,
"Little Miss Marker,"
in which the line is spoken by actor
Adolphe Menjou
playing Sorrowful 'Sir Sorry' Jones.
Of course, that begs the question as to why the dictionary would list the
collection as the source, or any collection for that matter,
let alone a collection of reprints from other collections.
The screenwriters on the movie are
William R. Lipman,
Sam Hellman, and
Gladys Lehman.
Any help in unraveling this would be greatly appreciated.
This spot is reserved for useful information on where to find stuff of a practical use.
Your comments are welcome.
VX-6000 Universal remote: If you have misplaced your copy of the
instruction manual for your VX-6000 Universal remote, click
here to download a new one.
DAK Turbo Breadmaker: I purchased a DAK Turbo Breadmaker for my brother.
When the paddle-stirrer disappeared,
we had enormous difficulty locating a supplier of replacement parts.
Click
here for the latest info on DAK
breadmaker parts and DAK in general.
This spot is reserved for useful ideas and tips. Your comments are
welcome.
Cleaning your shower curtain: I am hardly Heloise or Martha Stewart,
but I have learned a few things about cleaning shower curtains (which I feel can be
one of the most annoying housecleaning tasks around.
First off, I use a plastic shower curtain, so I am concerned with soap scum and mildew and
with not tearing the curtain into shreds. The best trick I know is to clean the shower
curtain in the washing machine in cold water on the delicate cycle. Use the soak cycle as
well if you can. The important trick is to include an Oxygen bleach (like Clorox II®)
along with the detergent. An antifungal spray disinfectant is also a help.
Finally, for years I always struggled taking down and putting up the shower curtain, until
I came up with this little gem. Instead of unhooking the rings from left to right or right
to left, start at one end and unhook every other ring down to the end. Then go back
and do it again. On the third pass, take down the remaining rings. That way, the curtain
remains hanging so you don't have to hold it up and unhook it at the same time. On the last
pass, with at least three rings left, there won't be so much strain as to tear the curtain,
but there will be few enough rings so that you can hold the curtain easily for the brief moment
it takes you to take the curtain down.
When re-hanging the shower curtain, do the same
procedure in reverse. Start by hooking every third ring. That means holding the curtain up
for only a few seconds. After that, you can reconnect it at your leisure.
Good quotes on practical matters are hard to find. My preference is for the words
of Abraham Lincoln. Those below are taken from Lewis & Belck (1967), a secondary source
that, regrettably contains no reference section. (I commit here and now to getting
better references for each of these items.)
We have some from
Lincoln,
and a few others.
The following, taken from page 17 of Lewis & Belck (1967), is somewhat general,
but good advice nonetheless:
These are not, however, the days of miracles, and I suppose it will be granted
that I am not to expect a direct revelation. I must study the plain physical facts
of the case, ascertain what is possible, and learn what appears to be wise and
right.
from page 29:
Never stir up a litigation. A worse man can scarcely be found than one who
does this.
from page 31:
In the early days of our race the Almighty said to the first of our race,
"In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread": and since then, if we except
the light and the air of heaven, no good thing has been or can be enjoyed by
us without having first cost labor.
Another from page 31. This is one of my all-time favorites:
If we could first know where we are, and whither we are tending, we could better
judge what to do, and how to do it.
A last one from page 31:
Stand with anybody that stands right. Stand with him while he is right, and
part with him when he goes wrong.
A story from page 54:
In reply to a letter asking for his autograph, Lincoln wrote: "Dear Madam --
When you ask a stranger for that which is of interest only to yourself, always
enclose a stamp."
Lewis, E. & Belck, J. (Eds.). (1967). The living words of Abraham Lincoln.
Hallmark.
As for the best leaders, the people do not notice their existence. The next best,
the people honor and praise. The next, the people fear; and the next, the
people hate...
When the best leader's work is done the people say, "We did it ourselves!"
Lao Tzu, The Tao de Ching, number 17, T'ai shang hsia
This translation is from the passage on "Leadership" in:
Townsend, R. (1970). Up the organization: How to stop the corporation from
stifling people and strangling profits.. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
Interesting and useful sites:
-
InfoSpace is also pretty handy. You can check out
every phone directory in the country all at once. (No help if that ex-boy- or girl-friend has
moved to Singapore, I guess.)
Links to more links:
Return to top.
Return to the main recreation page, to
my HomePage
or to the UNC/CH HomePage.