MySQL does not Work on Windows 10

If you recently upgraded to Windows 10 and found MySQL no longer functional, you are not alone. Yesterday, I bravely (code for naively) decided to apply the free Windows 10 upgrade despite the possibility of it messing me up on the job. Although the upgrade went smooth overall, the following error appeared when I tried to connect via MySQL through PHP:

"No connection could be made because the target machine actively refused it. "

After writing a simple one line test program, I was able to rule out PHP and Apache Web Server as the culprit(s). Since I opted to install the upgrade on the first day Windows 10 was released, no help was available on the Internet. Nonetheless, I was able to correct the problem by uninstalling MySQL through the .msi install/uninstall utility provided by MySQL. In my case, I had to completely uninstall even the data files - be sure you have a good backup! After reinstalling, MySQL worked like a charm but of course I had to restore the backup first.

On a prior Windows upgrade, the same issue occurred only last time it did not require deleting the MySQL data files. I recommend trying to preserve the database if possible. If you do elect to remove the MySQL data files, be sure you have multiple backups! If you can log in to the MySQL Command Line Client afterwards using the password you chose during the install, the problem has been resolved and it is just a question now of restoring your backup database.

How to Significantly Extend Your Battery Life

A quick search on how to improve battery life on your tablet or other device reveals many options. Screen brightness, system notifications and background processes all consume a great amount of resources. Although reducing screen brightness and disabling system notifications can improve battery life, often these tips fail to significantly extend a battery charge. One way to greatly improve battery life is to power off the device completely when not in use. In a trial period, a Samsung Galaxy III tablet that was constantly losing charge overnight improved dramatically when I began powering off the device after each use. Instead of charging once or twice a week, now the device charge can easily go two months or more!

To be fair, there are plenty of days I don't use the device and when I do, it is often just to do a quick search or get the weather forecast. A less drastic approach would be to try using airplane mode instead which disables WiFi. With little hint as to why the device was losing charge so rapidly, I opted to completely power down in my test. The result to say the least was impressive. I suspect the reason why the device was losing charge before so rapidly was because of excessive background activity probably due to automatic Chrome or Android O/S updates.

While this approach does work, it requires waiting 30 seconds to a minute for the device to power on and WiFi to come back up. I usually turn on the tablet and put the device aside while it boots. It should also be noted that for security purposes, it is best to leave the device on at some point so that critical security updates can be downloaded. Nonetheless, if you are tired of constantly charging, this method will probably work for you.

Why are these Nuts Celebrating Christmas in July?

Like it or not, Christmas is big money. Many retailers promote the season in July to boost sales at a time when business otherwise might slump due to vacation schedules. Savvy consumers take advantage of early bird specials to purchase customized holiday cards at the highest preseason discounts. Businesses also benefit by promoting their brands on personalized holiday cards featuring logo imprinting and custom verses.

While some might find it ridiculous to even think about the holidays now, in just a few short months, promotional cards will have to be mailed. Waiting until the last minute will not only cost more but also leave you unprepared as you may need time to assemble a mailing list, figure out how to print labels and set an appropriate budget for postage and other expenses. Yes, 'tis the season to be merry as a hastily executed plan will not impress anyone and only end up costing you more for less benefit.

Articles You Should Never Read on the Internet

Despite its many shortcomings, the Internet is still overall the best way to find information. Even with occasionally incorrect and deliberately deceptive content, it is hard not to appreciate the tremendous value in being able to find virtually anything at the click of a button. Nonetheless, there are some practices that go too far in my book. One of the most annoying is the concept of list-based articles that lure you in with topics like:

• 10 things you should know about the IRS
• 12 reasons why you should never retire before...
• 100 amazing pictures from Hubble

While list-based articles can be informative, they are often plagued by advertisements and require you to click once and sometimes several times just to see the next part of the list. Do you really have time to wait for 25 slow loading pages that require you to also scroll down each time to see the "Next" button? Even worse, if you do continue to press "Next", will you have to click 25 times again to go back to the referrer page? Sites like answers.com use this trick to lure you away from news sites. If going back to the referrer site is too cumbersome, many visitors will stay on the target site. While this approach may work for advertising firms, it can be a real drag. Personally, I rarely read these types of articles anymore because it just encourages bad presentations that are so slow and annoying, to me it's not even worth it.

Careful analysis of such lists also reveals that often these same articles just provide common information simply repackaged. The author may see a topic like advantages of biobased products and reword it as "7 reasons why you should buy biobased products". In the process, they not only steal content but also turn good presentations into monotonous ad driven presentations. Good sites do not have to employ such awkward tactics and sites that use this practice only diminish the value of their content.

GSA and Green Initiatives

In coordination with GSA (General Services Administration), Fluid Dynamics has developed a system for treating hard water without the use of salt, chemicals or even power. Through their proprietary alloy, calcium deposits are inhibited as water flows through the system. This success demonstrates how the green initiates and mandates of GSA are working to build a safer, greener environment. Now if GSA could just avoid the bottlenecks in their own system, working with the government might not be so painful.

Source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/2620697

Arctic Sea Ice Increasing and its Implications

Despite numerous doom and gloom forecasts predicting the catastrophic affects of global warming,
once again a conflicting report sheds doubt on the theory. According to a new study:

"Climate researchers used satellite data to calculate the volume of sea ice in the Arctic between 2010 and 2014, and found that while ice volume decreased by 14 percent between 2010 and 2012, it rose dramatically between 2013 and 2014 – by nearly 33 percent in 2013, and 25 percent in 2014."

Source: http://www.newsquench.com/2015/07/is-arctic-sea-ice-on-the-rebound/

With the mountain of snow finally melting in Boston mid-summer and a new climate model even suggesting the possibility of a much cooler period returning by 2030, one could be forgiven for being skeptical. Critics of the global warming theory argue data is misrepresented, skewed and even filtered completely to favor areas that support the theory. Science is not supposed to be biased but clearly the media seems to favor the notion that man is responsible for the argued "warming trend". Quite simply put, we haven't been studying climate long enough to even know what constitutes normal ice levels during inter-glaciation periods (i.e., between ice ages) and for all we know more abundant temperature readings along with increased media coverage and the human tendency to believe the worst may be responsible for manufacturing an unmerited conclusion that if wrong will only set science back in the future.

Plastic May Not be so Bad After All

When plastic first became popular, it was considered a material of the future. Since then, the concept of something being plastic brings to mind the notion of fake or cheap workmanship. While this certainly can be true at times, let's not forget how much safer it is to drop a plastic bottle verses a glass bottle. Likewise, plastic is also lighter and more flexible than many other common building materials. Its durability and other qualities often overlooked are now being reexamined for industrial purposes. A particularly exciting possibility is the use of recycled plastic in building roadways.

Like plastic, asphalt can be recycled. However, asphalt tends to fail at the worst times and can be expensive to replace. In principal, plastic is more durable in temperature extremes. Other benefits include:

• Lasts up to three times longer than asphalt.
• Less susceptible to cracks.
• Can be prefabricated for significantly faster road repair and construction.
• Has hollow interior for easier cabling and pipes.

European construction company VolkerWessel plans to begin testing a "street lab" within three years in the Dutch city of Rotterdam. Although people may have trouble initially grappling with the concept, if major roadways could be built and repaired faster and even last longer, the idea really does have merit. Until then, potholes and sinkholes will supply incentives for finding a more durable substitute for asphalt and concrete that is both eco-friendly and cost effective.

The Coming 2030 Ice Age

A new climate model recently presented to the Royal Astronomical Society suggests that in 2030, an approaching ice age will be upon us. The model uses a new method of analyzing sunspot activity to predict future weather patterns. In 2030, the model shows a similar pattern as that of the Little Ice Age that occurred roughly between 1300 AD and 870 AD. At its worst, the year without a summer (1816) occurred.

So how exactly would this effect us now? With Boston reporting its 75 foot mountain of dirty snow finally melting in mid July from the extreme winter we just had, can you imagine if this occurred throughout the country let alone entire world? With no place to put snow, inevitably the way we've built ourselves into corners would undoubtedly present many challenges. The extreme costs of snow removal, failed crops and inability to respond to emergencies would likely be disastrous on the world economy and people living with extreme disabilities.

Although the model is just theoretical at this point, one can only hope these scientists are wrong. Until then, enjoy a nice hot shower while you can because your pipes may be frozen tomorrow!

America's Contributions to the Space Race Prior to Sputnik

Although often downplayed, America's contributions to the space race prior to Sputnik are far more substantial than most people realize. In fact, Wernher von Braun used quite a few of American rocket scientist's Dr. Robert H. Goddards innovations to achieve the V-2 rocket (the first rocket to reach the Karman line or boundary between Earth and space).

"Wernher von Braun used Goddard's plans from various journals and incorporated them into the building of the Aggregat (A) series of rockets. The A-4 rocket would become well known as the V-2."

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wernher_von_Braun

After the war, the U.S. was also the first to conduct experiments in space including the study of how life is effected by high altitude (above the Karman line) radiation on fruit flies and rhesus monkeys. The U.S. also took the first photos of the Earth's curvature from space and in 1949, the Bumper 5 launch was the first successful multi-stage rocket sent into space. All this occurred well before Sputnik and to even suggest that the Soviet Union really began the space age is as inaccurate as it is naive of the major events and achievements that came before.

See also: http://roberthaskell.blogspot.com/2015/08/is-nasa-making-making-historic-blunder.html

Memory Loss After Visiting Dentist

Despite the fact that few people actually enjoy going to the dentist, most people regard the practice as generally safe. Occasionally though, some patients experience unusual complications. Although extremely rare, memory loss can occur. After visiting the dentist, a 15 year old forgets his age and believes he is 13 again. In a more severe case, a man looses the ability to retain new memories completely. In the later case, a British soldier stationed in Germany wakes up from sedation pale and eyes glazed. After his condition does not improve by 5:00 pm, he is taken to the hospital where it is revealed that his memory is reset every 10 minutes. After three days, his memory improves slightly but he is still only able to retain memories for approximately 90 minutes. So what exactly happened?

For the patient's privacy, the real identity of the man known as "William" has been changed. Typically, events like these can occur from brain damage or traumatic events. With his wife claiming no traumatic incidents occurred and his brain scan showing no signs of any physical damage, an allergic reaction to the anesthesia is one possible cause. Other possibilities include bad anesthesia, a contamination occurring during the procedure or even a rare illness or genetic link coincidentally kicking in. It is even possible the dental visit itself was traumatic enough to cause this if "William" had an undiagnosed phobia.

Research on lab rats have revealed similar effects can occur where new memories are unable to be retained if a certain protein is blocked. In lab experiments, the rodents lost memories as well after about 90 minutes. In the future, scientists hope to find the trigger for this protein deficiency and how it can be reversed. In the meantime, "William" still believes it is 2005 and each day he has an appointment for the same root canal that set his life horribly awry. Talk about nightmares! Imagine thinking each day you needed a root canal!

Find more Robert Haskell technical, health-related and human interest articles at roberthaskell.blogspot.com and officesalesusa.com.

Sources:

http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2015/07/man-who-lost-his-memory-at-the-dentist.html

http://97x.com/15-year-old-forgets-how-old-he-is-after-wisdom-teeth-surgery/

Why Sputnik Was NOT the Beginning of the Space Age

Although most people incorrectly assume the launching of Sputnik began the space age, the truth is far more involved. True the Soviet Union successfully launched the first satellite four months before America launched Explorer 1 but that is only the icing on the cake! The V-2 rocket for starters (the first rocket to cross the Karman line), was heavily based on the designs that American rocket scientist Robert Goddard published. Before Sputnik, America also sent the first animals into space, took the first photos of the curvature of the Earth from space and set a record altitude accomplishment using a hybrid V-2 / American manufactured rocket. According to NASA:

'In 1949, the "Bumper-WAC" became the first human-made object to enter space...'

While today we know the V-2 technically crossed the later defined Karman line first, Bumper 5 (Bumper-WAC) was still the first multistage rocket successfully launched into space and a record setting altitude more than double that of the previous record of 110 miles set by the V-2 on December 17th, 1946. Sadly, these amazing U.S. achievements rarely get mentioned though they occurred many years before Sputnik!

Yes Wernher von Braun was still critically important for providing the first stage of the rocket (a modified V-2) but it was really the combination of the V-2 first stage and WAC corporal missile (second stage) that provided the necessary velocity to finally tear through the brunt of the atmosphere into the almost total vacuum of space. Setting a record 393 kilometers altitude (244 miles), the 1949 Bumper 5 launch deserves its place in history though many fail to grasp its significance. The 1949 launch showed the world what a multistage rocket could achieve and paved the way for deeper space missions to occur. Without this capability, man would have never made it to the moon let alone sent probes to the outer reaches of the solar system.

By and large, U.S. achievements in the space race before Sputnik were quite significant and to suggest that Sputnik was the real beginning is highly erroneous. That is not to say Sputnik wasn't a monumental achievement but American contributions to the space race prior to this were quite significant and have been downplayed far too long.

References:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/explorer/bumper.html
http://www.spaceline.org/rocketsum/bumper-wac.html
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/explorer/fast-facts.html
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/profile.cfm?Sort=Alpha&Letter=B&Alias=Bumper%20WAC
http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/171684main_Bumper8.pdf

http://roberthaskell.blogspot.com/2015/07/americas-contributions-to-space-race.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animals_in_space

See Also:

http://roberthaskell.blogspot.com/2015/08/is-nasa-making-making-historic-blunder.html

How Technology May Usher in Another Economy Crash

When the housing market crashed in 2008, the affects were amplified by day traders that used computer programs to quickly make trades. These programs are so efficient that stocks can be purchased and sold in a tiny fraction of a second. While this allows aggressive investors a way to make large earnings that would not be possible by human means, the system is particularly vulnerable to dramatic shifts in the market. The result was a disaster compounded greatly by technology that sent the markets into a free fall. The initial cause of the downfall may have been bad loans not properly vetted by greedy and unscrupulous investors but technology also played a major role here.

Although one would think we would have learned our lesson the first time, unfortunately these programs are still in use today. To combat this, regulators have proposed adding a small transaction fee to discourage overaggressive trading. With powerful lobbyists opposing the measure as expected, the potential for greedy investors to bring us down again has economists and federal regulators deeply concerned. Will technology and greed be our ultimate downfall? Only time will tell.