Stupid Questions?

I thought maybe the lounge is the place to ask those questions you can't quite get yourself to post in the technical threads. Like this one ...
Does the jumper referred to in computers have any connection to the idea of jumper cables used to start cars?
abri

 

It links two pins to produce different settings (like on hard drives).

I presume there's a relation but not a very strong one.

 

From those great folks at Funk & Wagnel



Jumper cable
Noun

jumper cable - a jumper that consists of a short piece of wire; "it was a tangle of jumper cables and clip leads"

clip lead - a short piece of wire with alligator clips on both ends

jumper - a small connector used to make temporary electrical connections

conducting wire, wire - a metal conductor that carries electricity over a distance


Booster cable
Noun.
An electric cable used to connect a discharged battery to a power source for charging. Also called a jumper cable.

 

thank you BC

 

okay, here's another one ...

How do you answer somebody's post without having their attachment be included as part of the answer?

abri

 

You can edit image links, and I think attachments, out of their replies, leaving only the text, or edit out part of their text if you want to focus on and answer just one part.

 

I would assume (which is a horrible thing to do) that you are referring to PM's that you are replying to here on MG, which you can highlight and delete as much or as little as you need, as I have done with your quote

 

well, not pm's
just regular posts in threads

 

Instead of clicking on anything, just type in the quick-reply box and the click post quick reply

 

okay, thank you.
Here is my next question.
(I've gotten several stacked up)

What is required to run a forum like this in terms of money, volume, manpower, knowhow, commitments? How did the forum here get going? How old is it? It's a lovely place.

abri

 

Started 2001 I believe?? Not too sure...

And you have to pay to run vBulletin forums (but they're worth it!), and also need a domain to run it from.

Then you have to watch the content that some people donate to your forums, can be a lot of spam!

 

I was wondering if it costs 1000's per month, hundreds, millions, 25 dollars? A ballpark figure. I like vBulletin too. It's great. One thing I like about the MG forum is that it's working. It seems like a lot of things came together at the right time. Huge computer help need. People with training who wanted to spend time on it. The technical resourses. I wondered what it would take to set up something like it in a completely different need area.
abri

 

Well, actually, I have another question. Perhaps neverending. I've noticed that a lot of people who come to this site looking for help have laptops. This leads me to ponder why laptops might have more trouble than desktops or towers. I thought of several things but I don't really know. One thing was that laptop people can be seen all over town using hotspots. I've heard that wireless connections are not as safe as ones that use cables. I also wondered if it might be because people with desktops and towers tend to open them and look inside and just fix things, whereas I don't know many people who open up their laptops. Then I was wondering if it could be because people haul their laptops around so they get jostled a lot more or if it could be related to a consumer profile, that people who have laptops tend to work with them more for earning money and that they are more dependent on them.

Any thoughts on this?
abri

 

More people with laptops have questions or problems because more people have laptops than desktops. Given the choice, most people in the last few years will buy a laptop instead of a desktop for its portability and space-saving attributes. Also, you do have a point about being able to fix desktop towers yourself vs. opening a laptop. Many people (especially those who frequent tech sites such as this) build their own desktops, but it's rare and very expensive to build your own laptop.

 

I wouldn't hesitate to open a tower, but tend to stay away from laptops. If you build a laptop it will probably still have a brand attached, since the parts and how they go together is anything but generic. IBM computers standardized towers (which we can be thankful for), but laptops are still being engineered from scratch every time a new one comes out, or at least that is my impression.

You want some jumpers? I have a lot from the old motherboard days. They tend to be 1/8" X 1/4" X 1/16", and connect 2 pins together. Nowdays electronics uses software instead, but the early days were a pain, basically doing a binary count with jumpers (say on a field of 20 pins) when you bought the hardware used and didn't have the docs. Nowdays you can get docs off the internet for anything, but this is a relatively recent development. I don't miss em a bit. Far as I know hard drives and CD/DVD players are the only gadgets that still use them.

 

Bill
Motherboards still use em even thought most call them selfs jumperless.
Jumpers to reset bios/cmos & jumpers to enable sound for either back or front ports



Hey I thought of another Jumper
You can some times find them on a Bridge, a Cliff or Tall buildings ledge

 

Just incase you Guy's were Worried about this Guy
He lived

Ha Ha


He might have broke a nail, butt i think that was it

 

Actually the last 3 or so makes/models I've worked didn't have them, although come to think of it I did see some pins to reset the CMOS for passwords and whatnot (but they didn't have the jumpers attached).

Didn't even miss em, not even a little. I still have a stock of VA503** that I break out now and then, gives me a little reminder of what I haven't been missing, then I go back to not missing them anymore.

Eventually I'll have to move up from Athlon, but for now I can wait.

 

Asus! LOL! That, I suppose, is also a jumper.

Bill, maybe you could use them for Christmas tree decorations.

Okay, here is my next stupid question. I see everyone has politely side-stepped the one about what it takes to run a site like this. Nevermind. There are many ways to the answers. However, I was wondering something else completely.

I've heard of back doors for a long time, which still bring to mind, a slamming screen door on a midwestern farmhouse. Nevertheless, I find it a useful analogy. My question is, if someone has physical access to your computer, brings along a diskette and makes whatever changes necessary to set up a backdoor, would an antivirus pick up on it? I remember reading there are backdoors put in by many of the software manufacturers. I can't remember the reasons. But ... why doesn't the antivirus software pick up on these? Well, maybe those are two different questions, but related.
abri

 

It's too broad a question. This "site" is two separate components. First, and primarily, is the main download site, which draws most of the traffic and interest. Made and cared for primarily by Tim and Jim, who made it, keep it up, test and approve the various software that gets listed here, chase and approve the advertising that pays the bills, plus a talented artist that did the custom graphics for it. MG is a LARGE and popular download site, but it didn't start that way. Tim and Jim built it into what it is today, with a lot of time and effort, which are ongoing; it doesn't run itself.

Second, and separate, although related, are the forums. Crewed mainly by free volunteers, although the site itself is maintained by Tim & Jim, and probably the hosting site. First thing necessary is a license to run vBulletin. See here:
http://www.vbulletin.com/order/
Second, is an attraction to get people to notice you. Here, that's the download site.
Third, is a GOOD crew of mods and admins that can keep the forums in line, civil, fun, and useful, plus talented volunteers that are willing to help people with their problems or in some way contribute to the "community".
Fourth, is bandwidth, which is not free. For a large high-traffic site, free hosting services just don't cut it. Flakey service and obnoxious ads are a way of life at the free hosting sites, with limited bandwidth. You get what you pay for.

First and foremost is something that attracts large numbers of people, and keeps them coming back. Most site visitors don't join. Anywhere.

Just setting up a forum is easy, getting attention and building a community is VERY tough. Most forums end up being a place where a few friends just hang out together.

 

Thanks very much G.T.
I appreciate this site for many reasons. I like the way the ads are done very much. I even click on them sometimes, whereas at other sites, I feel like I'm getting beaten to death with blatancy. Also, it is a great way of getting people to register here, by offering them something they need (often quite desperately), access to the information in the forums and to the READ & RUN ME FIRST file, which, if they run it and want to post, then they need to register. Add to this the ability to travel back and forth for long distances without losing track of your own local history, plus the amount of thought which has gone into the presentation of the information in terms of good quality writing, it's just hard to beat. I think the forum draws together people who need each other for complimentary reasons and is at a point in time where it serves an important need. It reminds me of the era of short-wave radio operators. There probably aren't enough compliments I could give to the site. Thanks for your comments.
abri

 

Heres another stupid question, whats the 9 millionth digit in pi

 

If you wondering why I asked, its for extra credit.

 

My BBS has a back door, I don't know how to access it but I know it is there. I've known several people who tried to use the BBS software without paying for it, and got an impromptue visit from the manufacturer explaining the facts of life, basically pay cash or pay with their computer.

 

I don't know if this gives you the 9 millionth. But look how quickly the probabilities on finding a number of increasing length drop! Astonishing!

http://www.angio.net/pi/piquery#find

abri

 

Last time I looked Tim it was [ 9 ], sheesh you can take numbers of your age, but for all that is Holy leave our Pi alone

Next thing you know the boy will want to eat it!!!!!!!

 

Why is there Fat32 and NTFS? Is this a relic?
abri

 

Yes.

NTFS replaced Microsoft's previous FAT file system, used in MS-DOS and early versions of Windows. NTFS has several improvements over FAT such as improved support for metadata and the use of advanced data structures to improve performance, reliability and disk space utilization plus additional extensions such as security access control lists and file system journaling. The exact specification is a trade secret of Microsoft.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FAT32
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NTFS

 

yeah, so, since data sticks, flash drives, jump sticks or whatever they're called are all quite new in comparison to NTFS, why would they still be in Fat32 even though that is the older system?

 

The reason is it is simple and can be used by "disparate operating systems"...

From the FAT link:

 

ohhhhhhhh ... That! is interesting.
Is that the reason, why once you change to NTSF, you can't go back? Because you might be more compatible with other systems? lol (sorry, I have to laugh, because I sense that sinister politics behind this)
abri

 

Actually you can convert your Fat32 USB RAM devices to NTSF, I believe it was Mada Milty who showed Bazza how, and I converted mine and it works like a charm, but I can't locate the *&%# link

 

Oh... THAT link.
lol
(why would you want to convert them if they are more compatible unconverted? .... oh, yeah, I remember ... somebody had a problem about that ... god, my brain is full)