Untwisted VortexTechnology

What Online Instant Messenger do you use?

RT Cunningham — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 11:31:17 +0000

If you use an online instant messenger, which one do you use? Over the years, I've used a few different instant messengers, starting with ICQ. Does anyone still use that? I've also attempted to use online services which aggregate multiple instant messenger protocols, like Meebo and IMO, but I always found them to be more trouble than they're worth.

Google Talk, Skype, Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo Instant Messenger and More

When all of these instant messenger clients were new, you had to have one of each installed if you talked to people who didn't use the same one you did. Nowadays, some of these are compatible with each other. For example, if you use Yahoo Instant Messenger, someone using Windows Live Messenger can communicate with you, get added to your contact list and things of that nature.

All of the Windows-based instant messengers I've worked with have video capabilities. When video doesn't work on a Windows client, it's usually a hardware problem, meaning the camera is having issues. In my experience, only the cheapest webcams will fail to work properly.

I primarily use Skype, but not for instant messaging. I use it for the VoIP capability so that I can call relatives in the US and they can call me – I have an online telephone number that's local to some of them. For instant messaging, I use Yahoo Instant Messenger because of all the people who contact me through it on their computers and cell phones. I, myself, normally use a cell phone for emergency texting only.

Instant Messengers for other Operating Systems

While I'm not as familiar with the other operating systems as I'd like to be, I've had some experience with UNIX and Linux. As far as instant messengers go, however, it's only been on a couple of the Linux distributions.

I haven't tried it within the last two years, so things may have changed quite a bit. Each time I installed Linux on notebook computers or my current desktop computer, I could never get the video chat part of it working. For me, that was a show stopper.

I stay so busy these days that I really don't feel like killing a few hours and trying to do it again, although I understand there's a Skype for Linux that's supposed to work pretty well. Perhaps, when I'm faced with a lengthy power outage again, I'll attempt to install Linux (probably Ubuntu or Mint) as well as Skype for Linux on my MSI netbook.

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What is Sexting? It's Sexually Explicit Texting and Picture Sending, that's what it is

RT Cunningham — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 19:16:35 +0000

I wish there was a way to stay informed when a new word is invented. I've seen references to the word "sexting" in the past few months and haven't been reading about what it pertains to. At least not until now, with yet another celebrity controversy appearing on the social radar.

Sexting vs. E-Mail

The word "sexting" is a portmanteau of the words "sex" and "texting" (and "texting" is short for "text messaging"), but it doesn't just mean texting involving sexually explicit words. I especially hate new words coined that don't quite mean what you think they do.

With sexting, sexually explicit messages, which may or may not include text and may or may not include images, are primarily sent over mobile phones. This may seem like something relatively new, but it's been around as long as e-mail has had the capability of attaching pictures. In fact, instant messengers were used for doing this before cell phones became ubiquitous.

Problems with Sexting

With mobile phones, especially cell phones, sexting can create problems some people may not be aware of until it's too late. Because cell phones can be carried almost anywhere, that which is viewed on a cell phone can sometimes be seen by more people than the intended recipient. If the attached images are sexually explicit photos of minor children, for example, one or both parties in the communication can end up facing criminal charges.

Another problem is wrong numbers. You may not think this is a problem, but how many times have you sent a text message to the wrong person? A lot of people, especially younger people (not my generation), move their fingers so quickly over the cell phone keypads and make simple typographical errors frequently. If typos happen, so do wrong numbers. I've seen it happen in front of my own eyes, so I'm not making this up.

In the case of sexting, making an honest mistake (even when the message isn't quite so honest) can land you in jail. Please be careful how you communicate, especially in our guilty until proven innocent societies.

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Movie, Music and Software Piracy – Say hello to Pandora for me, will you?

RT Cunningham — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 19:56:06 +0000

Piracy has existed in one form or another for almost as long as movie, music, and software files have been in existence. When the Internet opened up to consumers of the world, it was like opening up Pandora's Box. The cat is out of the bag and the recording industries as well as software authors do not like it one bit.

Piracy is Not the Correct Word

Equating copyright infringement with piracy is exactly what the owners of the copyrights want and they know it's not the same thing. Pirates of the high seas were thieves, usually working for one government against another, but thieves nonetheless. File sharers are not thieves because sharing isn't stealing. Stealing something means depriving someone of something they own. With file sharing on the Internet, no one has been deprived.

Regardless of proper word usage, the word "pirate" is now synonymous with "thief" when it comes to file sharing as far as ordinary consumers (and politicians) are concerned.

Piracy is Caused by the Recording Industries Themselves

The recording industries are causing piracy to occur by being unable or unwilling to change their business models. They get copyright laws enacted to protect their rights while trampling on the rights of consumers.

One law exists on the books (in the US) that allows each of us to make one archival copy of any recorded media we own. Another law exists that says we can continue to do so as long as we don't circumvent any copy protection. With CD music, this isn't a problem since most of it doesn't have any copy protection embedded. With movies, almost all of it has some form of copy protection. With software, copy protection isn't a hurdle, but losing a software license will be.

What's really irritating about the recording industries is that they honestly believe that if you want an archival copy, you should have to buy it. Buy two plastic discs instead of one and your problem is solved, or so they think. The problem with plastic media is that it doesn't last as long as it's supposed to, even if toddlers don't get their hands on it and destroy it for you.

Even with that mentality, driven by the recording industries, it wouldn't be such an issue if the prices were reasonable. No one should have to pay full price for a copy of anything they already own.

Of course, I'm only touching on a couple of reasons the recording industries have broken business models. There is a solution to their dilemma, but they won't like it at all.

Video Streaming and Downloads

The reason that downloading music and movie files is so popular with a small percentage of the population (it really is small in comparison to the number of people who still buy the media) is that it's more convenient than buying the same products. It's not because they don't want to buy it most of the time, despite what people will tell you.

Okay, with the newer stuff, it's pretty easy to buy it, even if you don't agree with the prices. It's the older stuff that disappears from store shelves and becomes harder to obtain, especially at video rental stores.

If the recording industry offered wide scale streaming downloads of all the digital media they put on disc, and charged a reasonable fee (monthly is a good idea), I'm sure they'd make money hand over fist. A lot of people who download the files (not streamed) only keep the files temporarily, especially with movies. Why anyone would want to keep a copy of Gigli is beyond me. Streaming downloads don't have to replace sales of physical media; they just need to augment the physical sales.

Pissing off consumers doesn't work to their advantage either. How many times do they expect to make money off the Beatles White Album anyway? If you already bought it on vinyl, it shouldn't have to cost full price when you buy it on cassette or CD. Are cassettes still sold? It's up to the recording industry to track sales and they should have the capability, especially with the current state of technology, to offer copies or replacements at reduced rates.

Of course, there's no incentive for any industry stuck in the past to embrace the future. They do not care about what's good for consumers; they only care about their bottom line. Companies that embrace consumers are doing very well in the marketplace. Failing to produce what consumers want and treat consumers with respect is what results in things like piracy.

Personal Experience

I no longer buy any form of recorded media. If I can't buy it and download it in one form or another, I won't bother. I watch movies (rarely) at the local theater and I listen to music (sometimes) through online music services and most of that is completely free.

All it took was for me to have one of my favorite movies on DVD become unplayable due to a single scratch for me to come to that decision. Of course, I don't listen to CDs in my car or try to play movies anywhere other than my computer.

When I lived in the US, I rented movies through Netflix because I was happy with paying $19.95 a month for having 3 movies in my possession at all times. Services like that don't exist locally or I might be inclined to do it here, even if I have to drive to swap them out.

There are other things I could do, that I won't do, simply because I'm not interested in doing things that way. I know that I can download any music album, any movie already out on DVD, and any software title (already cracked) if I want to and there's not a damned thing that can be done to stop me since I don't upload anything anywhere and downloading anything is not illegal. The only reason I don't is because I'm just not interested in what the industries have to offer. What I'm doing right now is what interests me.

I have hundreds of DVDs on disc stored in closets in this house that I never watch. Some of them, given to me, haven't even been watched for the first time. I have disc cases full of CDs with music from various artists sitting in other places, which I never pull out to listen to. The last thing I need, at this point in my life, is more stuff that I won't listen to or watch.

Getting Back on Topic

Sorry if I tend to ramble. The point is that there is no longer anything the movie, music, and software industries can do to stop Internet piracy. They can slow it down and make it go further underground, but that's about it.

Movie, music and software piracy is here to stay. The best thing the industries involved can do is to produce what consumers want and allow them to use it in any way the consumers see fit. When file sharing becomes a waste of time, it will stop on its own. Judging by the actions of the industries involved, I don't think that will ever happen in my lifetime.

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An LED, LCD or Plasma TV with 3D Technology – I'm having Uncomfortable Flashbacks

RT Cunningham — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:04:10 +0000

I was born in 1960 and 3D movies at the local theater were no longer the rage by the time I was old enough to remember going to it. Actually, I don't know what movies made in the 1950s were designed with 3D filming technology and I don't care. I don't have fond memories of movies designed to be watched with 3D glasses and I seriously doubt I'll ever watch another movie filmed in 3D only.

The Horror of Watching Movies with 3D Glasses

Before I wore my first pair of contact lenses in 1982, the only way I could watch a movie in 3D was to tear the arms off those cheap 3D glasses the theaters give out and tape them to the front of my eyeglasses. My vision was bad and I had "Coke-bottle" lenses. I even watched an adult movie in 1979 or 1980 like that and I think I'll be scarred for life. The human anatomy was never designed to be seen in such a way.

I think I saw a grand total of two movies in 3D between 1982 and when I had LASIK eye surgery done (and none since). I remember Friday the 13th Part III and Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over and that's it. I refused to watch Jaws 3 in 3D because I just knew I'd have a heart attack.

The New 3D TVs

Samsung has rolled out a whole new line of LED, LCD and plasma TVs with 3D technology built in. They include two pairs of 3D glasses that only work with their TVs. I can see the glasses becoming popular reorder items – does anyone at Samsung have any experience with kids? Two is never enough if you have more than one kid in the family (and big kids like Dad too).

I've read the chatter of the people looking forward to seeing Avatar in 3D when it comes out on Blu-ray discs but meh, I've already seen the regular version and I'm not impressed.

I didn't look to see what other TV manufacturers have decided to get in on this 3D craze and I really don't care. I will never buy one for me or anyone else. The advertised prices seem to be about double what the going rate is for the current batch of LED, LCD and plasma TVs. I have plans already in place to buy a 42-inch LCD TV, without 3D technology, and I'm sticking to it.

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The Bloom Energy Server – 10 Years is a Long Time for Residents to Wait

RT Cunningham — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:26:41 +0000

The Bloom Energy Corporation just put out a press release about their new Bloom Energy Servers. These parking lot-sized devices are now available to the big corporations, some who have already beta-tested them. The beta-testers include Bank of America, Coca-Cola, eBay, FedEx, Google, and Wal-Mart. For a device that's going to save people money and reduce C02 emissions at the same time, 10 years is an awfully long time to wait for a consumer version.

What is the Bloom Energy Server?

I only have the press release to go off of, but the Bloom Energy Server converts air and nearly any fuel source – ranging from natural gas to a
wide range of biogases – into electricity via a clean electrochemical process, rather than dirty combustion. Even running on a fossil fuel, the systems are approximately 67% cleaner than a typical coal-fired power plant. When powered by a renewable fuel, they can be 100% cleaner. Each Energy Server consists of thousands of Bloom's fuel cells – flat, solid ceramic squares made from a common sand-like "powder."

So… the first edition of the energy server consists of thousands of brick-sized fuel cells. As I understand it, a much smaller version consisting of just a few fuel cells, would be enough to power the average home. The CEO of Bloom Energy said he hopes to see brick-sized energy servers powering homes within 10 years and at a cost below $3000.

I'll believe it when I see it.

I read about how fuel cell-powered cars were supposed to be on the streets of America by 2004, two or three years before that. 2004 has come and gone and the best the automobile manufacturers have been able to come up with are hybrids of gasoline and electric cars, and at a price that's less affordable than the old technology.

Yes, maybe it's a good deal for corporations because it'll ultimately increase their bottom line. For home residents, however, it's nothing more than a pipe dream. We're better off learning how to make a solar panel or two. Solar panels are getting cheaper and easier to make by home enthusiasts these days and it seems like a more realistic solution to driving home energy costs down.

I'll probably die of old age before any kind of energy server makes it to the average home.

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Real Photographers use the Best Digital Cameras

RT Cunningham — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 04:04:27 +0000

I am not a photographer. In fact, the best digital camera in the world wouldn't be able to help me to take decent pictures. My nephew Darcey (the one I had the Batman discussion with), on the other hand, is a professional freelance photographer and he makes good money shooting weddings, models, and still life photos. I'm going to share some of his photos through my Picasa Web Album. I'm actually uploading them and putting captions on them as I write. I won't finish today, I'm sure, because I have to go through over 400 and leave out the ones that aren't worth keeping.

Darcey's Photos

I didn't get a chance to see what kind of digital camera Darcey used, and I doubt it was the best SLR camera that money could buy, because Darcey was very protective of it. All I know for sure is that it was a very good digital camera. (Oops, looking at the info for the jpeg photos, it says "NIKON D90".)

Darcey took pictures of many things while he was here, locally and in Cebu City. This is the web album where you can see what I've uploaded so far:

Darcey's Photos Jan 2010

There are only a few photos of the nieces and nephews in the album right now, because my DSL connection is flaky today and it takes a while to get a single photo uploaded. My wife will be furious if I don't get her photos added before the day is over, so I'll be concentrating on those for a while. You won't see any photos of me because I was hammered when the photos were taken and I don't even recognize myself. Of course, I won't be having any more photos of myself taken until I take care of some cosmetic dentistry.

My Photos

I've got two pieces of video equipment that I can use take photos with. A JVC video camera (which also takes photos of course) that's about 5 years old and my cell phone camera. The cell phone camera is easier to work with but the pictures aren't as good as those from the video camera.

I've been hesitant about taking photos and then posting them because they eat up space on the server. Now that I can use Picasa, Flickr and other external services, I won't be worrying about that anymore.

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The Evolution of Digital Media — CD, DVD, Blu-ray and More

RT Cunningham — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 23:11:07 +0000

Having been born in 1960, a baby-boomer, I've witnessed the evolution of both analog and digital media in the marketplace. Younger people can't seem to appreciate these advances in technology. I'm talking about the people who were born after the 1970s. Digital media comes in all shapes and styles, but the basic media (the stuff the digital media is put on) is very inexpensive. Expense comes into play when you start adding computers and assorted computer peripherals to the equation.

Audio Formats

It's safe to assume that I remember standard AM radios and record players as the first devices to listen to music and other audio programs. I don't know exactly when they were invented, but I was using cassette tapes and cassette tape players as late as the mid-1980s. Somewhere along the line, 8-track players and tapes came and went as a failed format. I can't forget to mention vinyl records (and the material they were made of before that). They've been around a long time (some still exist), but their popularity has waned a great deal since the time it was the only format available for playing music at home.

Those were all analog. Nothing digital came along until technology advanced in the 1980s. Before I started seeing audio CDs, I saw other devices and media for video. The compact disc is the most popular audio format today and as far as pricing goes, audio CDs are no more expensive today than cassette tapes were in the 80s and they're a whole lot better.

I hear people complain about scratches and other problems with CDs, but I'm thinking those people never dealt with stretched or broken tape from cassette tapes. Fishing tape from car cassette players was always a fun thing to do. I'm not familiar with the newer digital audio tape (DAT) format, but I would have to assume the same ordeal exists.

Video Formats

Video technology has probably progressed much faster and further than audio technology. In the early 80s, I had experiences with Laserdiscs (the same size as the vinyl records), compact electronic disks (a failed technology — they used needles for audio and lasers for video), and video tape players. Amazingly, the video tape players (VHS format) are still available yet disappearing rapidly in favor of DVD players of all kinds.

Of course, video tape media still exists. I see it still being used in cheap digital cameras as well as other devices including video surveillance systems. I don't see movies on tape anymore although I'm sure they're still available in video rental stores.

I bought a DVD player during the first wave of sales. It was expensive, but the video itself was nice compared to what I'd seen on VHS over the years. Later on, the 9 GB DVDs became available while the 5 GB DVDs were still around. Other than for movies you can buy, I haven't seen that the 9 GB format has taken off. I have some favorite movies on DVD stashed away for rainy days (including "Evolution", for when I need to brush up on how to destroy alien species with Head&Shoulders shampoo).

The latest video format is Blu-ray. I'm not sure of the sizes but 25 GB sounds like something I remember reading. I don't have a Blu-ray player for either my computer or a stand-alone unit yet, but I plan to get one. I've seen what Blu-ray has to offer and I like it. I can imagine having multiple Blu ray movies and movie collections, like the entire collection of "Lord of the Rings" and the "Planet of the Apes" series of movies on one disc each.

The Crossover of Video and Audio Formats

While intended for one use or the other, the formats can be used for both. Digital video media (like DivX, AVI, and MP4) finds its way onto CDs, while music collections find their way onto DVDs. One thing I've overlooked is the use of the media for video games. Various PlayStation consoles have used CD, DVD and Blu-ray media, I just can't remember which is which. I believe the X-Box consoles have used DVD and HD-DVD (Blu-ray won out, but some devices still call for the HD-DVD format).

Audio and video technology has advanced a great deal in the last 40 years. I just wish the younger people could appreciate it more, take care of their media and quit complaining all the time.

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Televisions and how "Boob Tube" Originated

RT Cunningham — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:52:29 +0000

In a 1961 speech, Newton N. Minow (the chairman of the FCC at the time) spoke of the "vast wasteland" that was the television programming of the day. The television was characterized as the "boob tube", a mindless occupation and time filler. At the time, "boob" was another word for "idiot" and "tube" referred to the cathode ray tube that displayed the picture. "Boob tube" became the slang term for television because it was thought that only "boobs" watched it.

The Mindless Zombie Effect

Have you ever tried to get the attention of someone completely engrossed in what they're watching on TV? I have and it's nearly impossible. My wife and both my children (both of who are adults now) seem to be mesmerized by whatever they happen to be watching at any given time, just like a zombie looking for his or her next meal.

I have fortunately escaped that predicament. I don't turn on my personal television (the one in my master bedroom) for days or even weeks at a time. I only turn it on when I want to see the local news of the Philippines. My younger son's TV seems to be on for every minute he's awake and at home, even if he's not watching it and playing a video game on his Sony PlayStation Portable (the one I bought him for his birthday a year or two ago).

A TV zombie is rude. When I'm trying to get my son's attention, for instance, he'll turn up the volume on his TV with his remote control unit. The last time he did that, I yelled at him and told him never to speak to me again… ever. Of course I didn't mean it. I just wanted to be as rude to him as he was to me.

Life without TV

The happiest and most productive people I know are people just like me: People who watch TV rarely and really only when they feel it's necessary. People that spend a lot of time watching TV seem to be cantankerous and grumpy when they have nothing to watch.

I don't know about you, but I think there's way too much going on in the real world to waste away the hours watching TV programs that serve no other purpose than to kill time. This is especially true when the programs aren't even entertaining (the majority of television programming).

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Copyright Laws are Kind of Like Gun Control Laws

RT Cunningham — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 09:32:05 +0000

One of the reasons I enjoy reading Techdirt is because Michael Masnick continuously points out how and when the movie and music industries abuse the reason for the existence of copyright laws in the first place. Article I, Section 8, Clause 8 of the United States Constitution states: "To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries." The key words here are "limited times", emphasis mine.

The Copyright Act of 1976 changed the law so that a copyright would last for the life of the author plus 50 years (75 years when the author is a corporation). The Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998 extended it by 20 years for individual authors and some ridiculous number for corporate authors. Both of these acts have had the single effect of keeping the majority of copyrighted works (within the last century) out of the public domain until the earliest of them can enter it in 2019. What part of all that is considered "limited times"?

The US copyright laws are now so convoluted that they confuse copyright lawyers and the very people responsible for getting these laws passed are accidentally breaking them on what seems to be a monthly basis. And they expect the average citizen to abide by laws they can't seem to adhere to themselves? It's a joke, right?

The "Anti-Counterfeit Trade Agreement"

This is an agreement about copyright enforcement, not anti-counterfeit measures and the talks are being held in secret meetings around the world. If the progenitors have their way, developing countries will have to adhere to and enforce the copyright laws.

ACTA really is a joke, although the progenitors probably think otherwise.

Laws Create Criminals

Laws that people can't adhere to turns them into unwitting criminals. It's ironic in this sense because people who choose to be criminals don't adhere to the laws anyway. In this way, copyright laws are kind of like gun control laws.

When you create laws that turn ordinary citizens into criminals, then only the real criminals benefit from the laws. Take the guns away from the law-abiding citizens and the criminals are the only ones who still have them.

According to US laws, the Philippines (where I live) and other developing countries are filled with criminals. This country's government officials don't have the manpower or the desire to enforce US copyright laws here and why should they? This isn't the US or a territory of the US.

Yes, there are stores that sell music and movies here and they don't make much money because they're selling them at American prices in a place with Filipino wages. It really is no wonder that rampant piracy exists here because this is what's affordable to the people, not the prices that US-based industries want to charge.

The Joke is on Them

Sure, the developing countries may sign onto ACTA and give it plenty of lip service but like the existing US copyright laws, they won't be able to enforce it. Technology continues to advance and with every new way of content distribution invented, it becomes harder and harder for industries in question to control and enforce these draconian laws.

Copyrights were intended to make sure authors could make a little money and recoup the cost of producing their works and nothing more. By limiting them, it required authors to continue to produce new works in order to sustain a living from it. The way the laws are written now, copyrights have turned into a means of making both authors and their descendants rich.

The public domain is designed to allow people to create new and derivative works on top of that which has already been created. By stifling the public domain, new things have to be created in order to keep from breaking laws and it's at least 10 times harder to create something new than it is to modify something that already exists. And people wonder why innovation has been slowing in the last thirty years to a fraction of the previous 30 years, despite the technological advances. Don't get me started on patents and the fictional "intellectual property" rights.

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What Kind of Indoor Lighting Fixtures do YOU use?

RT Cunningham — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 08:49:40 +0000

When I and my wife had our house built, one thing I wanted was to save money on my electricity bills from the day we moved in. Almost every overhead lighting fixture in my house contains a fluorescent bulb instead of an incandescent bulb. There are only two overhead lighting fixtures which don't use fluorescent bulbs, but that isn't my fault. My wife wanted fancy lighting fixtures in the living room and dining room areas.

Electricity Usage

I'm not as frugal as some of my relatives would have anyone believe. I don't believe in waste, however, and having lights on in the house for the sake of convenience is something I consider a waste. In the evening hours, I am constantly turning off the lights behind my wife because she doesn't think about how much electricity she's using for no apparent reason.

One of the reasons I won't buy any contemporary lamps for the living room and bedrooms is that we spend so very little time in these areas. I spend most of my waking hours right here, in front of my desktop computer, for various reasons (it's where I write, watch movies, etc.). My wife spends most of her waking hours outside the house, with her siblings and their families.

The only time the kitchen and dining room lights are left on is when we are actually using those rooms. Of course, when in-laws are in the house, they turn lights on in every room they enter (even during the day) and never turn them off. I wander around my house at least once an hour to make sure lights that don't need to be on are turned off. Most in-laws are so superstitious and afraid of ghosts, some of them will only enter in pairs if no one else is in the house (including me).

LED Lighting

I'm always on the lookout for replacements to my indoor lighting fixtures. I want to eventually replace the fluorescent fixtures with LED (light emitting diode) fixtures. Fluorescent lighting fixtures use far less electricity than incandescent lighting fixtures and LED lighting fixtures use far less electricity than fluorescent lighting fixtures.

There isn't a wide range of LED anything available locally yet, or I would already have some in place. The last time I was in the US, I brought back some LED rechargeable flashlights and they're still being used during power outages. Those kinds of flashlights have just recently started appearing in local stores.

My Electric Bill

Compared to what I paid for electricity usage every month in the US, even during the lightest usage months, I'm paying very little. My monthly electric bill rarely goes above 3000 pesos (less than $66 at today's foreign currency exchange rate). I have my computer on 24 hours a day (not counting the power outages, of course), electric fans blowing in two rooms and other electrical devices being used quite a bit.

When my son is home, and not attending his nursing courses, he always has either his TV on or is playing some game on his PlayStation 2, or both. He falls asleep with TV on and I have to turn that off too.

Even with some of the waste that I can't control, our electric bill remains low. Now, people will tell me that it go up dramatically when I finally put an air conditioner in one or more rooms, but I don't think it will change very much. Modern air condition units, as long as they're working right and the coolant is properly "charged", don't use much more electricity than these fans we have blowing day and night, especially if we get the kind that have temperature controls and not just timers.

Outdoor Lighting Fixtures

This is something I don't want to get into just yet. I have a couple of light thieves (relatives) who think lighting their area of the compound is more important than having lights in my area. I keep finding sockets missing their light bulbs. If looks could kill, I would have a few less relatives.

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