2018 | Birds on a Cable

Fake Flash Drives

By Michael Gregory On December 27, 2018December 27, 2018 In Tech Tips

I have about 30 flash drives in my backpack for various IT needs. Some contain tools to install software, some are entire bootable Linux environments or virus scanners, and some are just for copying files or backing up a user’s computer before doing something dangerous. They’re different makes, models, and sizes; and I’ve got them all on keyrings that jingle a bit when I pull them out. The largest drive that I carry around daily is 32GB. At home I have a 128GB drive which contains a backup of my computer from when I last reinstalled Windows. The largest offerings on Amazon are for 1 TB thumb drives from a reputable company for around $400, with 1/2 a TB at around $100-$130 (but wait a few months and prices will drop even more).

Slowly Approaching Zero Waste

By Kristin Imperio On December 19, 2018July 1, 2019 In Misc

I’m going to preface this by saying I am far, far away from zero waste. I’m not sure that I will even get close. But I’ve continued to be more conscious about how to reduce waste in a way that works for me now, because as I am learning, it’s a practice, like many things.

You may already be applying these pro-tips on the regular (reusable water bottle, maybe!?) so I hope you’ll find these helpful. Below are some things I’ve been practicing in real life:

Path of Exile – Betrayal League

By Will Jay On December 12, 2018December 13, 2018 In Fun Stuff, Misc

Let’s cut straight to it: Path of Exile is an isometric roleplaying game that gets me all hot and bothered. The game servers effectively get wiped once every three months, with players starting back at square one. This wipe is accompanied by a new league, which is a content patch that changes the core way that the game is played. It addresses imbalances to the gameplay experience that were drudged up during the previous content patch. While experiencing new content is what brings a lot of players back into the fold every few months, another chunk of players come back to exert their will on the newly-minted economy.

Words Per Minute

By Laura Jean On December 5, 2018June 26, 2019 In Fun Stuff

In 7^th Grade I completed an elective course in typing. Typewriting? Nah, I’m not that old. But the keyboard did look like this, complete with the no2 pencil placement:

Some of the other Birds mock how loudly I type – with authority, some (none) might say – and I wonder if it’s a product of being raised on a landscape of competitive typing. Keyboard buttons required elbow grease to properly place letters. I had to focus to win, to up my Word Per Minute game. No mistakes. No auto-correct. Shift to capitalize. Which hand is responsible for the letter, B?!

Hack the Holidays

By Alex Robert On November 29, 2018November 29, 2018 In Fun Stuff, Tech Tips

It’s that time of year again. The time of year when you are probably expected to buy a bunch of stuff for people. If you are in the majority, then you have already begun. In fact, 39% of shoppers begin in October. If you are like me, you have no idea what to get anyone and haven’t the slightest idea how it already got to be the end of November.

Data Security and Microsoft Office 365

By Sean Christopher On November 21, 2018December 6, 2018 In Tech Tips

With more and more businesses moving into Office 365, data security is becoming a little neglected. While convenience helps productivity, it can also hurt security. Essentially, Office 365 is a user’s mobile server that can be accessed from any device with internet. This has inevitably led to entirely new levels of security concern. Here are some easy-to-implement tools your business can employ to safeguard data.

DDOS As A Service: The Next Big (Painful) Thing!

By Laura Jean On November 15, 2018November 15, 2018 In Tech Tips

If you, like many other users (and certainly many IT service providers), are sick and tired of cryptoware attacks, then there’s good news on the horizon! Pretty soon, cryptoware will be the least of your concerns!

A Series of Tubes: How This Festive Thanksgiving Image Gets to Your Computer

By Michael Gregory On November 7, 2018November 7, 2018 In Tech Tips

Here’s a wonderful, festive, royalty-free stock photo I got by searching for “thanksgiving” on a stock photo site:

Now, just how did that photo get from the server hosting our blog to your computer? I’m going to break down a core part of the internet for you: routing!

Homemade Kombucha

By Will Jay On November 1, 2018November 1, 2018 In Fun Stuff, Misc

Since moving to Chicago, I would guess that at least 75% of my frivolous buys have been consumables. “15 dollars for this burger at lunch today is probably fine. Definitely won’t do it again tomorrow;” and, “Cat will really appreciate these Oreos I got her. Or she would have if I hadn’t hidden them and eaten the whole sleeve on the sly,” are two commonly-seen scenarios in the VanDyke realm. Despite that, I’ve been trying to offset those costs by homebrewing the staple drink of any household, Kombucha.

The Illusion of Free Will

By Alex Robert On November 1, 2018November 1, 2018 In Misc

If you are reading this right now it is not because you decided to. I did not decide to write this. Obviously, I did write it, and you are now reading it so how did this happen if neither of us made these decisions? Don’t worry I will tell you, but only because I literally have no choice, or at least that is the argument made in a very thought-provoking book I picked up a while back.