Category: Books
2022 Week 50 – Nazis in the USA?
About the only thing good about Winter is it gives me more time to read. I happened to catch a Joe Rogan clip on YouTube about Operation Paperclip (OP) with author Annie Jacobsen who wrote a book under the same name. As a history buff, I’m really enjoying the book and the details of OP are quite incredible.
Operation Paperclip was a secret United States intelligence program in which more than 1,600 German scientists, engineers, and technicians were taken from the former Nazi Germany to the U.S. for government employment after the end of World War II in Europe, between 1945 and 1959.
Wikipedia
Here we go again… Real ID Deadline for Domestic Fliers is Extended. Again. In 2005, in response to the September 11 attacks, the US Government decided travelers needed to have more identification than an easily forged driver’s license. May, 2023 was the latest deadline but it’s been pushed out 2 more years because we’re still not ready to implement it. This is embarrassing, to say the least. It’s been 17 years!
And finally… What does your pet do when you leave the house? This pet owner strapped a GoPro to his Lab and left him alone for the first time.
2021 Week 50 – Kindle Upgrade
I’ve been an Amazon Kindle user ever since V2 was released in 2009. That version had a keyboard and built-in cellular modem that allowed you to transfer data and download books anywhere, anytime.
The Kindle e-reader does one thing and, in my opinion, does it very well. It provides a distraction-free reading experience. OK, two things, you can carry a huge number of books with you at any time. This is handy when you want to read a couple of books at the same time, depending on mood and energy. It makes no noise, it has no pop-up messages, and it’s already ready to pick up where you left off in your last reading session.
I eventually upgraded to a newer version and then another. The low $100-125 price and ever-increasing screen resolutions and lighting options made the upgrades worth it. We lost the cellular modem years ago, but with WiFi being so accessible, it’s something you really don’t miss. I typically like to read in the evenings where it helps me unwind. On occasion, I can use my phone to finish a chapter or launch the Audible version of a book where it syncs with the text copy for easy switching between the two.
My last Paperwhite was starting to get a little sluggish, and I realized after 5-years of ownership I was no longer getting updates with some of the newer software features. After doing a little research, I found that I could trade my old unit in for a new one and get a 20% discount as well as a few dollars for the unit I was turning in.
The 2021 Kindle Paperwhite (as reviewed by Wired) is the best Kindle e-reader to date. The screen is larger, and the screen resolution looks like you’re reading a paper book. Backlight options include a warmth mode that tints the screen to ease eye fatigue at night. It’s all automatic based on the sunrise/sunset in your area. You don’t really notice the screen color until you turn it off.
Now that it’s getting cold out, and dark early, I’m spending a lot more time reading in the evening, and I’m really enjoying this upgrade.
I wrote about the Grammarly app in Week 42, and I’m happy to say after the 90-day initial trial, I renewed for another year. It’s been beneficial in my personal and professional life. You might have noticed some improvements in the blog posts too. I was missing some necessary punctuation in my writing. Some obvious (bad editing) and some not so obvious. They just released a new Desktop app for the Mac that allows it to work in ANY application. It was previously limited to its own app outside MS Office apps. Now it works right inside my email program and makes editing on the fly much smoother. At $150 a year, it’s not cheap but, if written communication is an important part of your life, it’s worth checking out to see if it can be helpful to you.
And finally… The limited series show “True Story” on Netflix was a surprise hit. Kevin Hart was excellent in his role, and the story moved very quickly through the seven episodes. Each episode is only 30-minutes, so it’s a pretty quick watch & easy to binge on a rainy day.
That’s it for thie week. Christmas is less than 2-weeks away! I should probably start shopping or something…
2021 Week 48 – You ARE Being Watched
I took some time over the long holiday weekend to finish a book I had started a few weeks ago and promptly start another related one.
Permanent Record by Edward Snowden is an eye-opening tale centering around a late 20-something NSA contractor who exposes the US Government’s mass surveillance system created after 9/11. Love him or hate him he brought to light the vast data collection of US citizens by their government.
No Place to Hide by Glenn Greenwald starts up with his interview of Snowden while he hides in Hong Kong before his trove of documents is released to the public by various medial outlets. Meanwhile, Laura Poitras films a series of interviews for her documentary Citizen Four. It goes into incredible detail about the surveillance systems in use around the world, by many countries, and details just how far they have gone to invade your privacy.
If you have any interest in this kind of stuff it’s well worth your time to seek out these books or at least watch the full documentary (available on YouTube with Ads (that will track you, haha)). It will chill you to the core and make you think about what you do online going forward.
As I wrote earlier this year everyone needs to be using a Password Manager application. My favorite continues to be Bitwarden. The free version is more than enough for most people but the $10 paid version adds some advanced features and helps support the development. Getting started with a Password manager is NOT difficult and is NOT a good excuse for NOT using one. Bitwarden for Beginners is a great place to start.
NordPass just released their annual Top 200 Common Password list. It shows what people are actually using to secure their private data as well as how long it takes to crack and gain access. If your password is on the list you should assume your accounts have been compromised because you probably use the SAME password in multiple places. The benefit of a Password Manager is that you can use a different, unique, password for every account and only need to remember ONE (secure) master password/phrase. The tool generates and documents the login details for you.
Another security tool you should consider using, especially if you use your devices in public, is a personal VPN account. This tool encrypts your traffic and protects you from anyone wanting to access your data. Sounds a little overkill but it’s not uncommon for someone to sit on a public network and watch for unsecured traffic to exploit. In fact, as far back as 2013 AT&T and Starbucks encouraged it! My personal favorite is Private Internet Access (PIA) which works on all devices including your phone and tablet. An annual subscription is $39.99.
I think that just about wraps things up for this week. It’s hard to believe 2021 is 90% over & we’re getting ready to settle down into the winter months. At least I have a stack of books to go through while hunkering down inside for the next 3 months. See you next week!
2021 Week 14 – 72 Sat / 21 Thu
You have to love Indiana weather. We were enjoying 70-degree weather last Saturday & woke up to 21-degrees and flurries on April 1 (no joke!). At least we’re finally into April and spring sprung on March 20th. This next week is supposed to be back in the 70’s. I’ll take that!
A week after I get signed up for the Johnson & Johnson “One-and-Done” Covid-19 Shot news breaks that up to 15-million doses are being recalled because of formulation issues. I was able to get my vaccination at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway last week and it was one of the most organized things I’ve done since the Eli Lilly drive-up COVID testing last May. Kudos to the IMS staff, Indiana National Guard, and IU Health for making that an amazing success.
I love cooking shows and spend a lot of time watching my favorites on Youtube and Food Network (PBS too!). I discovered a new chef (new to me) last week that I didn’t realize I had been reading about for years.
J. Kenji López-Alt is a restaurant owner and Chief Culinary Consultant at the Serious Eats website. He also just published a book called “The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science“. I really like his Point-of-View (POV) video style and his more advanced cooking techniques like this one:
Finally, I have some camping trips coming up and will be reviewing some new gear I’ve picked up in the past year. Look for those in the coming weeks. Enjoy the amazing weather this week!
What We’re Reading/Watching/Buying in December
It’s been a busy month and Christmas is less than a week away (so is a much-needed week off work for yours truly). As I get older the years just keep speeding up & I don’t know of any way to slow them down! It’s just the opposite feeling from when I was a kid where the years dripped slower than that bear bottle full of honey.
The Great Cord Cutting Project of 2015 is going better than I could have ever expected & there’s no going back. I’m spending some of that old evening TV time trying to keep up on the articles I’m always collecting via Pocket. Some items recently clipped include:
- Liz Biro: My top 10 dishes of 2015
- The secret life of baggage: Where does your luggage go at the airport?
- How the Universal Symbols for Escalators, Restrooms, and Transport Were Designed
- The Plot Twist: E-Book Sales Slip, and Print Is Far From Dead
- TV stations could make millions by pulling the plug
The Kindle is getting a workout too with several books being read in parallel. Just depends on what I’m in the mood for. Stephen King’s 11/22/63 and Andy Weir’s The Martian are both fighting for my attention.
I’ve also taken the opportunity to really dig into what’s available on the streaming services I subscribe to, particularly Netflix and Amazon:
- The Man in the High Castle (Amazon) is an alternate history story that has the Germans and Japanese wining WWII and taking control of the USA. It’s a pretty dramatic series that’s full of twists and turns.
- Narcos (Netflix) depicts the story of Pablo Escobar and the DEA agents assigned with bringing him to justice. I’m not going to lie, you have to pay attention to this show. Mainly because it’s 90% Spanish with subtitles. And a Gringo like me needs them. No Sprecken la Espanola
I’ve been helping keep USPS, FedEx and UPS in business with lots of holiday purchases for friends and family. Along with those items I picked up a new Keyboard/Case for myself and my iPad Air 2. The Belkin Qode Ultimate Pro is a great replacement to the Logitech keyboard cover I was using with the last iPad. It’s a little pricy $150 but It’s currently on sale now for $130. I’m working on a review but let’s just say that after a few days using it I’m a fan.
After a glowing review from a co-worker I also ordered the Hamilton Beach Breakfast Electric Sandwich Maker. Seriously, I did! I’ve see this gadget before but didn’t think it would be any good, especially costing under $30. Well I’m told this thing really works so I had to see for myself. When I happen to eat breakfast the egg and cheese (with various meats) is my regular go to. Delivery is scheduled for Monday so we’ll see how it goes Tuesday morning when I fire that baby up and make my first sausage, egg and cheese muffin.
No matter your religious preference (or not) I hope everyone is gearing up for a fun holiday season with friends and family. If you get any good tech gadgets or kitchen toys let me know! I’m always looking for ways to give Amazon more money.
“Among the Hidden” Book Series
How does this book sound to you?
In a futuristic society the world is controlled by a new government and “The Population Police” who have decreed that no family shall have more than two children. These laws having been brought on supposedly by overpopulation, severe famine and death. Any child being born third or after in a family is a “shadow child” not to be seen by anyone or they will be taken away and killed along with their family and anyone who harbors them. – Book synopsis from Wikipedia
Sounds like a scary scenario right? Here’s the kicker. My son was assigned this book to read in 6th grade! Doesn’t that seem a little dark for pre-teen kids? I’m not alone according to some of the reviews on Amazon.
When I asked him about the Diary of Anne Frank he’d never heard of it. This “Among the Hidden” book has a similar premise of hiding form the outside but at least Frank’s tale is true & discusses an important part of world history.
Not sure what to think of this…
How To: Getting Personal Documents on Your Kindle
If you have a Kindle this is a must read… The Gadgeteer, one of my favorite tech blogs, has a great writeup on how to get just about any document on your Kindle.
Incidentally, The Gadgeteer, founded by Julie Strietelmeier, is based out of Columbus, Indiana. Not exactly a place were you’d expect one of the big tech blogs to be located!
There are several ways to convert and transfer documents to the Kindle. Some methods are free and other cost a few pennies per MB. Either way you do it if you want the most convenient way to transport and access documents while traveling the Kindle is definitely the way to go.
From NASA – Astronaut’s Photography Manual
Although somewhat simple and dated this manual is a relic of the space age that’s coming to an end.
I’m sure photography in the vacuum weightlessness of space has it challenges, especially when orbiting around the earth at 15,000+ MPH. With that kind of speed your lighting is going to constantly change and you really need to understand your camera.
A lot of the images we associate with space travel were taken with Hasselblad equipment it remains the main tool for ultra serious photographers.
If you’re interested in learning more about exposure settings and composition this 40-page manual is worth checking out.
007 is Back!
I started reading the latest James Bond book called “Carte Blanche” by Jeffery Deaver. Mr. Deaver has modernized 007 and readers will find a younger, more “hip” Bond. All of the old characters are still there & so far it’s a great read. It’s kind of hard to put down!
This is the first Bond book that I’ve read on the Kindle & I think I’m going to purchase the back catalog so I can re-read the classics in the new electronic format.
If you’re a Bond fan I think you’ll enjoy this latest book. Although the author is new to the Bond franchise you can definitely tell he’s a fan & I’m looking forward to more of his books.
New to the IndyScan Library; Tribal Leadership
I started reading “Tribal Leadership: Leveraging Natural Groups to Build a Thriving Organization”, by Dave Logan, John King, Halee Fischer-Wright, a few weeks ago after learning one of my clients, fresh out of a merger/acquisition, was sending copies to all of its senior level staff.
The reviews on Amazon.com are glowing and so far I like the general premise of the book. Tribal Leadership provides insight from a group of successful leaders and tells readers how to use the “tribes” that already exist within an operation to maximize productivity.
Overall I like the concept and can see how it could be implemented in certain industries. I think in the case of the client mentioned above it can only help the situation they are facing with separate diverse groups from around the country suddenly being forced to play in the same sandbox.